Action's Girl
by lovegrizzlybearEmmett
Summary: Anna meets Action, and everything changes. Story will be better than summary. I promise. ActionxOC
1. Timeline

**So I am beginning this story that has been brewing in my head for months now and it is driving me crazy. So I figured I would get it down in writing. And although I really like my story, and want to finish it, I make no guarantees on finishing it.**

**So before I begin my story officially, I figured I would give a backstory for my character, whose name is Anna. I tried really hard to write the backstory as part of the actual story, but it came out corny and boring. I guess I will probably put in a little backstory-ish thing later, but for now I will make this timeline for you. **

Age 5: Anna's mother dies, so she and her brother move in with their father after their step father claims he can't take care of them. (Oh, and her brother is seven at the time.)

Age 10: Anna meets Henry's new friends, Tony and a boy who calls himself Riff. She has a bit of a crush on the thirteen year old Tony for a while. Also, she meets a boy named John who becomes her best friend.

Age 12: Anna begins to notice that Henry is staying out late with a group of boys who call themselves the Jets.

Age 13: Anna first meets Action and the rest of the boys in the gang. John joins the Jets and is nicknamed Baby John by the boys.

**So that's most of the important stuff. I have the story mapped out in my head and all. It's just beginning it that is so difficult. Anyway, anyone who guesses who Henry is nicknamed in the Jets gets a shout out in the next chapter. **


	2. Prologue

The entire day of moving in with her father was a blur to Anna. That could have been because her eyesight was actually blurry from the building tears that she thought she had long since cried out. Anna had always prided herself on being able to hold her tears in whenever she took a hard fall, but upon the death of her mother that seemed to change.

What Anna remembered most of that day was her tight grip on her brother's hand, the solemn face of their stepfather as he left them, the smile of her father as he guided them in, and the sleepless night she had. The rest of the week was like that until she and Henry officially settled in. After that, life with their father seemed so easy.

They quickly made friends and established a solid relationship with their father. Time seemed to fly as they spent their days at school playing with their friends. Once summer approached, Henry always became excited for his birthday, even though it wasn't till August.

Years passed and soon Anna reached the age of ten. She remembered that October day clearly because it was when she first met John. They quickly became friends. When she brought him home later on in the month to go Trick or Treating with him, she was greeted by Henry and his two new friends, Tony and some boy who called himself Riff.

Anna became instantly smitten with the smiling Tony. His smile and optimism instantly won over Anna's ten year old heart. Throughout the night, Anna would walk in between Henry and Tony, while John walked on Tony's other side between him and Riff. Riff, Tony, and Henry were joking around the entire night, pretty much ignoring Anna and John as they would walk door to door collecting candy.

By the age of twelve, Anna had pretty much outgrown her fascination with Tony, although she would still get a little flutter in her stomach whenever he would smile at her. Which was quite often, as Tony and Riff always came over. Anna would always overhear Henry talking to Riff and Tony about the Jets.

Anna didn't figure out that the Jets were a gang until she was thirteen. By that time, Henry wasn't Henry anymore. He was Ice. He barely came home except to eat dinner and sleep. Also, John began spending more time with the Jets than her. They began calling him Baby John. Every time Anna would try to speak with John when his new friend A-Rab was around, he would just shrug her off.

John didn't really talk to Anna again till one night when Henry came in with another boy. Both of them were holding John up, who had a swollen eye and a gash across his cheek. Anna quickly grabbed peroxide and a rag as she tended to John's wounds. She told Henry to grab ice to put on John's eye.

John kept apologizing to Anna throughout his treatment, saying that he was sorry for blowing her off every time she would speak to him. Anna, never able to hold a grudge, quickly accepted his apology and put the past behind her. Then she remembered the other boy in the room. Turning to him, Anna looked at his face, which had a small bruise on his cheek bone. She then looked down to his knuckles, which were cut open and swollen.

The boy kept insisting that he was fine, and that he didn't need any help, but Anna's arguments eventually won out. She cleaned his knuckles and put ice on them. Later in the evening, John had fallen asleep on the couch, and Henry headed to bed. Anna led the other boy out to the door, and instructed him to put ice on his knuckles if they began to swell again. The boy rolled his eyes and left.

This seemed to be the routine every month, as John, Henry, and the other boy kept showing up with new wounds. Anna never asked questions, though. She didn't even ask the other boy what his name was. It was John who told her that he was called Action.

Soon, Anna was going to Doc's candy store every night, meeting all the other boys who were part of the Jets. Their names were Snowboy, Gee-Tar, Joyboy, Tiger, Mouthpiece, and Big Deal. The monthly routine of John and Action showing up at her house had all but stopped, so Anna figured she needed something to do during the afternoons. Doc would always greet her with a smile and a simple hello. Anna would then walk to the back of the store to sit next to John and Henry, keeping her mouth shut as they would talk about who they were going to have a rumble with next, or what building they would vandalize.

When Anna's fourteenth birthday came around, Henry brought her the present of his new girlfriend, Velma. Anna's initial dislike of Velma quickly grew once Velma began to speak. She hated the way Velma would pop her gum and say her annoying little snide comments about everything Anna did. But Henry was pretty much in love with Velma, so Anna just ignored Velma and everything was fine.

Once winter break came, Anna knew that there would be more fighting because the Jets always found ways to find trouble since they had more time to. One night was particularly bad for Anna because Henry had not arrived home when John and Action arrived. And what made it worse was that Action looked absolutely awful. His eye was swollen shut, he had a gash across his forehead and his lip was split open. And that was just his face. His knuckles were swollen, like usual, and Anna noticed that he was limping when Baby John helped him in.

So, Anna spent the night cleaning Action's wounds and worrying herself to the point of tears about Henry. John held her as she cried, while Action slept on the couch with a pack of ice on his ankle. Once Henry arrived home, he had no wounds, besides a few bruises on his knuckles. He went straight to his room and locked himself in there for the night.

After that night, everything seemed to change. Henry always had Velma with him; John began spending all of his time with A-Rab again; and Action began to go over to Anna's place by himself.

And that is pretty much where the beginning of Anna and Action's story takes place.

**So I know it seems kind of jumpy right now. I guess I just want to get to the story. If you're confused on something, private message me or leave a review and I'll explain anything you need help understanding. Thank you so much for reading. Also, I would like to give a shout out to the anonymous reviewer who calls himself or herself AJ. Even though you didn't guess correctly, I just want to thank you so much for the review. I hope you keep reading.**


	3. Chapter 1

**So, before I begin, I would just really like to thank everyone who is reading my story. Although I am updating more during my time off school, I soon will not be able to update as frequently. So I shall try to give you as much of the story as I can. Anyway, let's begin.**

It was a few months after the fight in which Action had gotten beaten pretty badly. Anna was sitting at the table one morning before school, eating the eggs she had made for her father and brother. Both her father and Henry ate quietly, barely looking anywhere but their plates. Anna had learned to live with her father being quiet. He was a very soft spoken man, who worked long hours and slept whenever he was home. He still managed to always be home for breakfast and sometimes even for dinner.

Anna looked back and forth between the two men who sat at her table and noticed just how different they looked from one another. While Henry was tall and had icy blue eyes, their father was a shorter man with deep brown eyes and dark hair. The only features they shared were their jaws and their smile.

Anna had her brother's sandy colored hair and skinny frame, but that was where their similarities ended. Anna had inherited her father's dark eyes and short height, and her mother's gentle jaw line, but everything else was her own. Her lips were thin on top, thicker on the bottom, and always seemed to curve slightly upward, as if she always had a smile on her face.

Anna glanced once more between her father and brother, and then went back to eating her breakfast. Once her father was done eating, he got up and gave Anna a kiss on the forehead before heading out. Anna looked at Henry and sighed.

"Guess it's time to go," she said quietly.

All Henry did was nod and make his way towards the door. Anna picked up the dishes and put them in the sink. She grabbed her coat and bag and walked out the door with Henry.

Upon leaving their apartment building, they were quickly swarmed by a lively group of Henry's fellow Jets. Henry instantly transformed back into Ice, and he walked with them, leaving Anna by herself. Action quickly fell back and made his way to Anna's side.

"Hey Action," Anna said once Action reached her. "How's it goin'?"

"It would go a lot better if those stinkin' PR's wouldn't blast their crappy music at two A.M. We need to teach them a lesson."

Anna rolled her eyes. Action always said things like that. "We're gonna clobber 'em next time they come near us," or "I'm gonna show those guys who they're messin' with," were constantly used by Action when referring to rival gangs. Anna knew that most of what he said was just empty threats.

Upon arriving at school, Anna said bye to Action and made her way to her locker. There she was greeted by a boy named Richard, who had English class with her first hour.

"Hey Anna," he said as smoothly as he could muster. Anna had to stifle a snicker at his attempt. "How about I walk you to class today? Keep away any unwanted attention."

Anna felt another person stand next to her and say "Hey Richard. Why don't you beat it? Anna don't want you around her." Anna looked up at John. Her heart panged a little upon seeing him. He hadn't spoken to her for months, and she noted that he had grown taller and was beginning to lose his baby face just a little.

"Hey now, Johnny boy. I don't hear protests from the lady. Ain't that right, sweetheart?"

Anna couldn't contain her laughter any longer. She let out a fit of giggles and leaned against the lockers for support. Richard gave her one last dejected glance, then sulked away on to English class.

John looked down at Anna and shook his head at her while trying to contain his smile. Once Anna's laughter had died down, John flung his arm around Anna's shoulders. John, being many inches taller than Anna, had to slouch slightly so he could talk to her.

"So, Anna, did ya' read that poem for English?"

Anna realized that she should be mad at John for ignoring her, so she took his arm off her shoulder and walked off. John took a few long strides and caught up with her.

"Whoa. Where ya' goin? I'm tryin' to talk to ya'!"

"Oh, so now you wanna talk to me. How nice. Where were you these past few months?"

John sighed. "Look, I'm really sorry, okay. I've been really busy lately. Me and A-Rab have been busy with stuff."

"Yeah stuff. Like vandalizing another building or spying on another gang? Gosh, that sounds so fascinating. Much better than talking to your best friend."

John placed a hand on Anna's shoulders and turned her to face him.

"Anna, I'm sorry. I miss talkin' to ya'. Talking to the boys ain't like talking to you. You listen. I really need that again."

Anna's resolve to ignore John crumbed and she put a hand on John's shoulder.

"Fine. I'll listen to you. But you better not go on ignoring me again for months. Got it?"

John nodded and smiled. He put his arm around her shoulder again and walked into English class with her.

They sat down in their seats and looked at Richard, who was still sulking from Anna's rejection. Anna took one look at John and burst out laughing with him.

_I've missed him_, Anna thought. She was glad to have her friend back, even if it was only for the rest of the day. She knew he would eventually ditch her again and go back to being Baby John full-time, but she figured that she should live in the present and enjoy the time with him now.

Once the bell rang, Anna looked at John one last time before turning her attention to the teacher and focusing all her attention on school.

**Short chapter, I know. I was going to put more Action in, but I figured that I would let him come in gradually. I thought it would be nice to put a glimpse of Anna's relationship with Baby John in. Once the story with Action gets rolling, there won't be too much interaction between Anna and John, so soak it up while you can, 'cause you'll probably get sick of all the AnnaxAction stuff that will be happening. Anyway, hope you enjoyed this chapter and I'll try to write more soon. **


	4. Chapter 2

**Hi everyone! Anyway, just want to wish you a Happy New Year! So, as I've said before, I probably won't have a lot of time to update for a while, so I will try to get in one or two more chapters before going back to school. Enjoy!**

Sitting in the back of Doc's candy store between John and Action, Anna began to realize that she was in a room full of guys. Cute, older guys. It wasn't really a surprise to her that most of the boys in the room were good looking. What was a surprise was that she found herself actually imagining the possibilities of being with them.

Looking at John, Anna tried to imagine what it would be like with him. Her eyes glanced over his pull, semi-pouty lips and his long nose. John was handsome. Anna had no doubt about that. But the only word that could describe a relationship with John would be awkward. Not just physically, but emotionally as well. They had known each other for too long.

So Anna shifted her gaze towards A-Rab. He had a cute face, but Anna couldn't say that she found him attractive at all. She looked over to Snowboy, whose expressive eyes could have been extremely alluring if he knew how to be serious about anything.

Then Anna looked to Action. He was the shortest one in the group, but he definitely made up for it with his fierce attitude and cool, angry stare. His eyes, dark brown and seemingly bottomless, were a very appealing quality to Anna. He was built pretty nicely, with a huskier frame because of his height. While most of the other boys wore sweaters that hung loosely around their chest, Action wore a form fitting shirt that seemed to scream Action's confidence in his form.

_Action is without a doubt the most attractive guy in this group_, Anna thought. But, of course, looks weren't everything. Anna thought of how it would be to actually have a relationship with Action.

She imagined that Action would be a very physical boyfriend, avoiding conversation at almost all cost. He would probably get angry at the slightest thing a girl would do wrong. Although he was an angry person, she never imagined him as the type to hurt a woman, so that was pretty good. Then again, she had known him for less than a year, and he had only begun to talk to her a few months ago.

She thought about how he would treat her. Whether he would open doors for her or pull out her chair. Anna wasn't big on chivalry, but little actions like that were nice. She concluded that Action wasn't really the type to do that.

Anna sighed. She decided that she would avoid dating any of the boys in the Jets. It would probably only lead to heart break, anger, or pregnancy. Or all three, if one was really unlucky.

But she still couldn't help that voice in her head that told her to take a chance and try it. 'Cause what was the worst that could happen? She wouldn't be stupid enough to get pregnant. And she could certainly deal with the anger in a productive manner. But the heartbreak? Anna always knew she felt things differently than most of the girls around her, but did that mean that she wasn't as prone to feeling heart break as strongly as them?

She looked over at Action again, who had his arm around the back of her chair. A few months ago, he wouldn't be sitting anywhere near Anna. And a few weeks ago, he would've only rested an elbow upon her chair. Anna wondered how long it would take before he gained the confidence to put his arm around her shoulders the way John did that morning when they began talking to one another again.

Shaking herself out of her thoughts, Anna took a drink of her watered down Coca-Cola and leaned back in her chair. She felt Action's thumb brush against her shoulder and quickly sat up. She looked to Action, who must not have noticed because he was listening intently to whatever Riff was saying. Anna shook her head and went back to drinking her Coca-Cola.

A few minutes later, Henry walked in with his arm around Velma's waist. He went to Anna and put his hand on her shoulder.

"You gotta go home, kid," he said to her. She grimaced.

_Is it really necessary to call me kid? _

"Fine," she said quietly. As she moved to pick up her bag and leave, John and Action got up. Usually, Action would walk Anna home. Anna had a suspicion that Henry paid Action to walk her home and keep her safe for the "dangerous" two blocks that it took Anna to walk from Doc's place to her home.

John spoke. "Action, you can stay here. I'll walk Anna home today." Anna mentally rolled her eyes before walking out the door with John.

Once they were half a block away, Anna exclaimed, "You do know I can walk myself home, right? 'Cause we're the same age, and it's not like it's dark outside or anything. You can go back."

John smiled at her. "Nah. I wanna hang with you for a little bit. Besides, Action told me that you got some pie at home. I want some!"

"I didn't make it. I've been too lazy to bake lately. I bought it at that one bakery that's a block from school. It's alright, I guess. Let's go."

John put his arm around Anna's shoulder and they began walking again. Anna took one look back at Doc's and saw Action smoking a cigarette, looking at her and John. She waved at him and turned back around, getting ready to talk to her best friend.

**So, this story is going nothing like I thought it would be, which I actually kind of love. I feel that how I'm writing it is a lot more realistic than what I had mapped out in my mind. Anyway, hope you enjoyed that chapter. I will try my hardest to get another chapter ready for you by tomorrow, but I make no promises. Thank you!**


	5. Chapter 3

Months passed, and the last day of school arrived. Once the bell rang, Anna quickly went to her locker, where John was waiting for her. She smiled upon seeing him and quickly ran up to hug him.

This was the one thing that changed in their relationship. Before, they never showed any signs of affection, not wanting to give each other the wrong idea. Now, it just seemed to come with their friendship. They knew it didn't mean they were dating, but Anna couldn't help feeling in the back of her mind that it always felt nice when John hugged her. That maybe a relationship with him beyond friendship would be kind of nice.

She pulled away from John and opened her locker so she could pull out her empty school bag. "So, are we gonna see that movie tonight?"

John's smile left his face almost immediately.

"Ummm yeah. About that. See, there's this girl Minnie who I wanted to take to the movies tonight. She's real nice and all, though, so I'm sure it'd be alright if you came."

_Yeah, and be a third wheel? I don't think so_, was what Anna wanted to say.

Instead, she said "Oh. It's alright. You go have fun with Minnie. I'm sure I can find something else to do. Maybe I'll finally bake something."

Smiling, John put a hand on her shoulder, squeezed, and turned around, leaving Anna to wallow in her boredom.

"I can't believe he blew me off," Anna ranted to herself as she made her solitary journey to Doc's candy store. "And for some girl who he probably barely knows! I knew I should've held a grudge this time!"

Anna walked into the candy store, only to run into Velma and Henry making out by the counter. Behind them, Riff and his girlfriend Graziella were doing the same thing.

_Oh for the love of God,_ she thought quietly as she ran to the back of the candy store. _Can't they get a room?_

A-Rab and Snowboy then walked in with girls on their arms. Anna couldn't help but roll her eyes at her bad luck.

_Could this possibly get worse? Am I the only one who has no one?_

Just then, Action walked in with a girl who was at least two inches taller than him. She was laughing unnecessarily loud and hanging on to Action's arm as if it was the only thing that was tying her to the earth.

_I thought too soon. It can definitely get worse_.

Sighing, Anna got out of her chair and made her way to the door. Once her feet hit the pavement, Anna began to run. She ran past her apartment, but didn't stop to turn around. She kept going until her legs burned. Which didn't take too long, since she hated running.

She leaned against a building and breathed heavily. She looked into the window of the building and saw her wild, wind-blown hair and sad eyes.

_What the hell, Anna? _She looked onto the street at the cars that were zooming past. _Why are you so upset about everyone pairing up except you? You haven't been with anyone in your fourteen years of existence. Why worry about it now? And so what if your best friend and the only other person you talk to deserted you for other girls? It was bound to happen at some point, right? _

Anna suddenly realized that she had felt a bigger pang in her heart and twist of her stomach when she saw Action with the other girl than when John told her about his date.

_But that could be because I haven't seen John with Minnie yet. Maybe if I see them together, I'll get super pissed and punch him in the face or something. But why would I want to be jealous? He's my best friend and I don't completely feel that way about him. But I don't feel that way about Action either. I'm so confused!_

Letting out an agitated wail, Anna kicked a rock that was on the ground. It flew against the building and rebounded, smacking her in the forehead.

"Damn it!" Anna put her hand to her forehead and felt the bump that was beginning to form. Looking back in the window, she saw a large red mark beginning to appear. Putting her hand back, she power walked to her apartment building. When she almost reached the door, she bumped into another person.

Anna didn't need to look up very far, because Action was standing there waiting for her.

"I thought you were already here. And why're you holdin' your head like that?"

"A rock flew up into the air and attacked me," Anna replied dryly. She reached into her back and retrieved her keys. Opening the door, Anna threw her bag on the ground and went to the freezer to get some ice on it.

Action followed behind her, chuckling as he did.

"Ain't it weird that you're the one who's hurt this time? I ain't ever seen this before."

Rolling her eyes, Anna turned around to glare at Action. He was giving her a mischievous smile that she had so rarely seen. He had never really displayed his smile too much around her. It made her stomach flutter just a little.

"Where's that girl you were with?"

"At Doc's. I told her that I had to go home to get something and that I would be right back."

"But you're not?"

"Naw. It feels like she's tryin' to swallow me whenever we make out."

Anna let out a laugh at this, feeling secretly happy that he had decided to come over.

"So, what are you doing here then?"

"I don't know. Seein' what you were doin'. I thought you and Baby John were goin' steady."

Anna laughed again.

"John and I aren't like that. He's got a date tonight."

"Do ya' want it to be like that, though?"

Anna thought about it for a second. Before she had a chance to answer, Action took her wrist and moved her hand that was holding the ice out of the way. He put his fingers onto it and felt around the bump that seemed to be forming rapidly.

Anna became abruptly aware that her hair looked atrocious and that his face was pretty close to hers. She looked up at him, expecting him to be looking at her forehead, but instead saw him looking down at her face.

_He's gonna kiss me, isn't he?_

Her heart quickened at the thought. Action leaned down slowly. Just when Anna thought he would swiftly descend his lips onto hers, the door burst open and obnoxious laughter followed.

With an irritated face, Action looked to see who was at the door. Anna stared ahead, wondering what had just happened. Or, rather, what would've happened. She placed the ice back on her head and walked to her room. Gently closing the door, Anna plopped on her bed.

Once she lay down, she replayed the past few minutes with Action over and over again. She analyzed every detail, from his smile to the way he gingerly took her hand away from her head so he could get a look at her bump. And then she thought of his annoyed look as he went to see who was there

_Clearly,_ she thought, _he must have wanted to at least tell me something. Why else would he be irritated about someone coming through the door?_

Putting her pillow over her face, Anna let out yet another agitated wail.

_I have no idea what's going on. I just don't get this kind of stuff. I really want chocolate._

Letting out an exasperated sigh, Anna got up from her bed and went out to her kitchen, searching for chocolate. When she found it, she went to her living room, only to see most of the Jets sitting there, drinking and listening to music.

Velma and Henry were squeezed together on the recliner, while Graziella was sitting on Riff's lap on the sofa. Next to them were A-Rab and the girl who was with him. On the end sat Action. Anna saw that some of the guys were sitting on the coffee table and the rest had found places on the floor or were standing.

Seeing no other open space, Anna made her way back to her room. When she had almost reached the door, someone called out her name. She turned around to see who it was, then saw Action waving for her to sit next to him.

After debating for all of two seconds, Anna walked over to Action and squeezed between him and the end of the sofa. Everyone seemed to be having a good time, as they were all engrossed in their own conversations about their plans for the summer.

"So," Action began, "are you gonna tell me how you got that bump?"

"I told you, a rock attacked me."

"Okay. And how did that happen?"

"I kicked it and it rebounded off the wall and hit me," she said as quietly as she could. Her face turned red as Action began to laugh.

"Well, can't say I'm too surprised that it happened to you."

As Action continued smiling, Anna noted that she had seen him smile and laugh more in that day than she had ever seen him do in the time that she had known him.

Looking up at him, she took every detail of his smile in. The usual flash of anger or boredom in his eyes was place by a happy, if not a little mischievous, flicker. His mouth curved upward in a way that displayed complete joy while still not being an all-out smile.

Anna figured that if just a simple little smile could make her stomach flutter, a full smile would probably melt her.

_Oh God_, she thought suddenly. _This cannot be happening. What am I thinking? I sound like an idiot! Why is this happening to me?_

Her thoughts came to a halt when Action put his arm around her shoulders. She hadn't even noticed his arm behind the sofa before. Now she would feel all the blood in her body rush to her face. She looked away quickly, trying not to display just how much of an effect he was having on her.

Getting up quickly, Anna walked to the kitchen and grabbed more ice. She began spreading it around her neck and face before setting it on her forehead again.

_Well I can't just stay here. If I do he'll think that I'm blowing him off and then he'll get pissed._

Anna walked back into the room and took her seat next to Action again.

_This is so bad. I should not like him. That's it. I don't like him. See, easy. Just come up with a list of things about him that you don't like and you won't feel like this anymore. It worked in third grade when you had a crush on that one kid. See, you can't even remember his name anymore! Just come up…_

Action had his arm around Anna once more, and he was acting like it was the most normal thing in the world. Like this sort of thing always happened.

_Then again, could it really be that bad to like him?_

For the rest of the night, Anna ignored her protesting thoughts and the flutters she got in her stomach and focused on Action's arm, and how nice it felt behind her.

**So, a little bit of corniness at the end, but I am actually quite proud of this chapter. And I got in two chapters in one day! Hell yeah! Anyway, hope you enjoyed it! Also, I would just really like to thank my two reviewers, AJ and lovelylittleflowerchild. This story goes out for you two especially!**


	6. Chapter 4

The summer heat seemed to drag on and on. Anna spent most of July in her living room with a fan blowing on her and a book in her hands. Action would usually stop by every day and eat whatever she had made for lunch. Since Henry was gone most of the day, and John was busy with his relationship with Minnie, Anna found herself home alone for most of the day.

Anna's crush on Action had subsided during the end of June. But on the Fourth of July, when Action had his arm around her during the fireworks, it came back with a vengeance. For the rest of the month, Anna could hardly stand to look at him in his tight fitting, sleeveless shirts that he seemed so fond of wearing on hot days. Her body would heat up more than it already had, especially when he almost caught her looking at his chest.

On one particular day, Action came in sweating and out of breath. Anna noticed a few new bruises on his knuckles and on his face. Knowing the routine, Anna quickly went to grab ice for him. He sat down at the kitchen table and took the ice from her. She then filled him a glass of water, which he drank in three large gulps.

Anna sat across the table from him, fanning herself off with her book. Action had begun to move the ice pack around to his forehead and the back of his neck. It stayed quiet like that for a while.

"So," Anna said, making an awkward attempt to start a conversation. "Why did you get into a fight this time?"

Action gave her a look that said he didn't want to talk about it. Anna sighed.

"You know, if you're gonna keep coming here for medical help, you're gonna have to start telling me how this keeps happening to you. Because what you're doing is obviously not working if you keep getting hurt."

"I'm fine," he said softly.

"Yeah. That's what you tell me every time. If you're not going to answer me, fine. But don't expect me to keep doing this for you, Action. I'm tired of seeing you get hurt like this."

That seemed to make Action snap. "Then I'll stop comin' around if that's what you want! I never asked you to worry about me! You don't gotta care anymore."

"I'm going to worry about you, regardless. And of course I'm not gonna stop caring. Don't be ridiculous. I'm just saying that I want to know why you get hurt. If I can do something to prevent it, I will."

But Anna knew that Action getting hurt was unavoidable, even when she said it, because Action went looking for a fight. He always did.

They were silent for a little bit before Anna broke the silence yet again.

"Why do you have to always look for a fight, Action?"

Action looked at her and shook his head.

"You wouldn't get it. You're too young."

This set Anna off.

"That's bullshit! You're only two years older than me. How much could you possibly understand that I couldn't?"

"You're still a kid! You're what, thirteen? Twelve? What the hell could you know about my problems?"

"I'm fourteen, asshole! I have been since October! And I might know about your problems if you would actually tell me things!"

"You're still too young! Don't try and get into something that you ain't gonna get out of!"

It was a warning. Anna knew that, but it didn't stop her from talking.

"You're just saying I'm too young so you can convince yourself to stay away from me!"

Action sent a glare at her that sent chills to the pit of her stomach.

Anna continued. "What changed today, huh? You don't have a problem coming here every other day and flirting with me when we talk about random things. But when I finally try to get to know what's going on, when I make a serious attempt to get closer to you, you do this."

Having had enough, Action got up from the table and threw the ice on the table. When he slammed the door shut, Anna let out a big exhale and went to cleaning up the table.

After cleaning the table, Anna went back to her book that lay abandoned on the sofa. Trying her best to concentrate, but ultimately failed at doing so. Growling, Anna threw her book against the wall.

Anna stood up and may her way to her room, where she climbed out her window onto the fire escape. She stood out there for a few minutes before climbing up it, looking for Action's room. She had only been to his home a few times, so she wasn't completely positive where it was. But she did find him in his room, lying on his bed looking up at his ceiling.

She knocked on his window frame loudly. He ignored her, so she knocked again. When he ignored her again, she went through the window and sat on his bed next to him. He didn't say a word, or even looked at her.

_Just apologize, Anna. Even though you didn't do anything wrong, just apologize._

_And what am I supposed to say? _Anna's brain was now in a battle with itself. _Say "I'm sorry you have anger problems and apparently trust issues or something and can't open up to me." Would that work?_

So Anna said this.

"Action, I'm sorry. You don't have to talk to me if you don't want. I understand. But please come up so I can treat your knuckles."

Action shook his head. "You don't gotta do that. I barely got a scratch, see? I'm fine."

"Action, please? I'll make you lunch?"

Nodding, Action said "Okay," and followed Anna down the fire escape to her room.

Once they reached the kitchen, Anna pulled out more ice for Action and brought out some ointment for his knuckles. Then she went about making lunch.

They stayed quiet even after they ate lunch. She sat in the living room reading and he kept dozing off. Once the clock reached 3 o'clock, Anna shook Action's arm lightly. Action woke up with his hair in slight disarray.

"Henry's gonna be home soon. You should probably go home."

"Why would he care if I'm here?"

Anna couldn't really answer the question, because she had no idea. _Would he actually care, honestly? Probably not._

"He wouldn't. He's probably busy somewhere with Velma anyway." _And John is with Minnie. Everyone has someone, so why should it matter?_

"Okay. You can stay then."

Action sat back down and tried to resume his nap. But then the phone rang and Action picked it up before Anna could.

"Hello," Action said. Anna tried reaching for the phone, but Action turned his body away. She kept reaching and Action kept talking and turning away from her.

"Uh-huh. Yeah. I'll tell her. 'Kay. Bye."

"Who was that?"

"Your dad. He said he's gonna be home late and that I better get the hell outta his house. He's a funny guy."

"Well then you should probably go. I don't want him to get mad 'cause you're here."

"If he's gonna be late, how is he gonna find out?"

"Action…" Anna said in a warning tone.

"What? He ain't gonna find out if I stay a little longer, right?"

"I don't want to risk it. Please, Action."

"You don't ever want to take a risk? Try somethin' new?"

Anna had that feeling Action wasn't just talking about staying at her house anymore. Before she could turn her face away, Action grabbed her chin with his fingers and tilted her head towards his.

When his lips pressed against hers, she became completely still and her eyes closed. He only kissed her for a few seconds, then pulled away. She opened her eyes and looked at him. He was staring down at her with a glint of rebellion in his eyes. Her heartbeat pounded in her ears, and she began breathing a little hard.

Action must have heard, because he gave a small smirk, then tilted Anna's chin up again, leading her lips to his.

The second kiss probably would have lasted a lot longer, but the door flew open and Henry walked in with Velma.

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOIN' ON?"

Anna pulled away from Action as if he was a hot oven. Velma laughed when she looked at all of their faces. Henry's look was pure rage, while Anna had a look of terror and guilt. Action looked frustrated and a little sheepish for getting caught in a kiss with his friend's younger sister.

"ACTION!"

Realizing that they hadn't given an answer, Anna looked at Action, who had a deer in the headlights look.

"What do ya' think they were doing, stupid?" Velma laughed after she said this, then went over to Anna and put her arm around her shoulders. "I don't see why you're getting' all hot about it?"

"Henry glared at Velma before turning his glare to Action and saying, "You have ten seconds to get the hell outta here. Then you're gonna stay away from my _little_ sister." Anna knew he emphasized the word "little" so that would be enough to convince Action to stay away.

"Now wait a minute, man. Just cool it and…"

"NO! GET THE HELL OUT!"

Anna gave Action a desperate look, her eyes pleading for him to put forth an effort to stay. But Action lowered his head before walking out. Anna's heart felt like it had been squeezed for a second as he walked out. Her eyes began watering, so she blinked rapidly to try and get rid of them. Henry turned his gaze to Anna.

"Velma, you gotta go, babe."

"Don't ya' think you're overreacting?"

"Velma, leave. Now. Please."

Velma rolled her eyes and gave Anna's shoulder a squeeze before walking out. Anna took a shaky breath before facing a very pissed off Henry.

"Anna, what was he doin' here?"

"Does it matter? He's not here anymore, so can't we drop it?"

"No. What's goin' on with you two?"

_Nothing now,_ Anna thought.

"He comes over every day to hang out. We just sit and talk. That's all."

"Bullshit! What else? How many times has he kissed you?"

"THAT WAS THE ONLY TIME!"

"Anna, don't lie to me."

"I'M NOT LYING! And what the hell do you care? You've got your perfect relationship, so why do you give a damn what I do?"

"'Cause you're my little sister. I gotta protect you from fellas like him."

"Action's your friend!"

"Yeah. I know him, and I know he ain't right for you!"

"You don't even know me! How would you know what's right for me? When is the last time you've said more than two words to me? You hardly even look at me anymore! 'Cause you're always off with Velma!"

"DON'T BRING HER INTO THIS!"

"You know it's true! You don't even love me anymore 'cause all you have time for is her. And dad's always working, and John has Minnie. Who do I have, huh?"

Anna didn't notice till then that there were tears ready to spill out. Her lip began to quiver, and when she couldn't hold it in anymore, she turned away and buried her face in her hands, trying to hide from her brother.

Henry's arm circled her shoulders, so she hugged him around the waist and put her face into his chest.

"I'm sorry, Anna," he said softly. "You still got me. I promise. I'll stay around more, okay?" Anna nodded, snot now dripping out of her nose. She turned and wiped the snot off on her shoulder, embarrassed.

"Thank you, Henry," she whispered softly, since her voice had gone a little hoarse from yelling and sobbing.

"Anna," he said, "I still don't want you seein' him, though. Okay?"

Anna froze. She thought that Henry may have forgotten about her and Action's kiss, but apparently her tears could not make him completely forget why they fought in the first place.

Not knowing what else to say or do, Anna nodded dumbly and told him good night. She went into her room and lay on her bed, burying her face in her pillow.

A few minutes later, there was a knock on her door. Velma walked in. She sat next to Anna and put her arm around her shoulder again.

"Sweetie, your brother is an ass." Anna laughed at this.

"Well hopefully it's not an entire family trait." Velma smiled and squeezed Anna's shoulder again.

"I'll try to get him to lay off you and Action. He ain't got no business getting' involved."

Anna shook her head. "It's fine. I don't want him to get mad at you. Besides, I don't think Action and I are gonna happen anyway."

Velma shrugged. "Ya' sure?" Anna nodded. "Okay. But if ya' change your mind, tell me and I'll get him to change his." Anna nodded again and mumbled thanks.

Once Velma left Anna's room, Anna thought about how she had never like Velma before. Maybe Anna wasn't exactly friends with Velma, but there was comradeship between the two of them, which was something Anna had never experienced with another girl.

Anna got out of her bed and went onto the fire escape. She went up and went to Action's window. Action was in his room and he saw her. He went to his window.

"So…" she said quietly.

"So…" he replied. He leaned in and kissed her again.

Anna pulled away quickly and shook her head.

"Action, this can't happen anymore. I'm sorry." Before she could walk away, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her back to his window.

"What do ya' mean? Ice don't gotta know."

"That's what you said before. 'He ain't gonna find out if I stay a little longer, right?' Well, you were wrong. I'm not gonna risk my relationship with my brother or yours with him"

"I don't give a damn about me and him. He can mind his own damn business."

"You know you care. He's a Jet, you're a Jet. You guys are like brothers."

"Me and him ain't."

"Action, please. Don't make this so hard. It's not gonna happen."

Action scowled at her before giving her one final blow. "Well I don't wanna date a kid anyway. It's not like we could do anything."

Action had known that her age was one of the things that Anna was always sensitive about. She was younger than almost everyone that she talked to, and none of them ever took her seriously.

Feeling that pang in her heart again, Anna went back down to her room and flopped on her bed before crying.

"It's all my fault," she muttered in between sobs.

_He didn't mean it. He's just trying to protect himself. I'm a God damn coward. I can't even tell him how I feel. I won't even try. _

When Anna was emotionally spent, she began feeling drowsy. Before falling asleep, she heard her father's footsteps go through the front door. After that, her eyes closed and she lost herself in her summer dream time.

**Got it done! Yay! So, I'll do my best to get another chapter up tomorrow. No guarantees on that happening, though. I have musical practices six days a week for the next two and a half months. But I shall update whenever I can. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!**


	7. Chapter 5

The last month of summer passed by in a flash since she had gone out with Velma and Henry every day. She walked into the school wearing a dress that Velma had given her on Henry's 17th birthday a few weeks earlier. She had told Velma that she wasn't supposed to give Anna gift, since she wasn't going to be the birthday girl for another two months. Velma just smiled and insisted that Anna take it.

Action had been at Doc's the day she went to celebrate Henry's birthday. John had also been there, since he and Minnie had broken up. He sat next to her as Henry blew out the candles on the cake that Velma had made him. It was the first time she had been at Doc's since July, and it was the first time she had seen Action since everything happened.

Anna looked away from Action as soon as he saw her, trying to focus on whatever John was saying to her. No one but Velma and Henry knew what happened between Action and Anna, and Anna planned to keep it that way.

Anna walked to her first hour class, immediately seeing that it was completely full, except for the seat next to Richard, the boy who had tried to flirt with her the year before. She growled internally before sitting next to him. He gave her a huge smile, which she ignored.

The teacher walked in and began talking about what the class would be like. Anna looked across the room and saw Minnie, John's ex-girlfriend, looking over at Anna and waving for her to go over by her, since there actually was an empty desk that had gone unnoticed by Anna.

Anna dashed across the room and took the seat behind Minnie.

"Thank you so much," Anna said to her. "You are a life saver."

"You're welcome," Minnie said smiling.

Anna had never really gotten a close up look at Minnie before, so it came as a surprise to her just how tall Minnie was, which pretty much the same height as John was. Minnie had light brown eyes and a long nose. Her hair was curly and brown, and it was pulled back into a bun. She wasn't spectacularly beautiful, but she had a cute smile with a dimple in one cheek that probably melted John's heart.

Minnie turned around towards the front, so Anna decided to put her head down for a little while.

Later, at lunch, Minnie had found Anna and invited her to sit with Minnie and some of her friends. Anna was surprised to hear that Minnie and her friends were not like most girls her age, who talked about trivial matters that never really interested Anna. They spoke of what books they read over summer, which made Anna feel a lot less pathetic since she wasn't the only one who did nothing over the summer.

_Besides have your first kiss and first heartbreak all in one day,_ Anna thought bitterly.

The afternoon classes dragged on forever since Anna had biology and Algebra for the last two hours. After a week of school, Anna had gotten into the routine easily, as if there had never been any summer. She talked to Minnie a lot, who was in almost all of her classes. Then, after school, she would go home with John and help him with any homework before doing her own. After an hour of helping John, Henry would usually come in from Doc's and help Anna make dinner.

Once September had ended, Minnie had gotten back together with John. This time, though, John didn't ignore Anna. In fact, he would bring Minnie over to Anna's house and the three of them would work together on homework.

Anna's birthday had approached in late October quickly. She woke up on that Saturday and went out to the living room, expecting Henry to be there, ready for them to celebrate her birthday together.

Every year, for the past few years, Henry would take Anna to a movie. Then he would stop at a bakery and buy a cupcake with a candle. She would blow it out and eat off all the frosting before giving him the cupcake.

That morning, however, Anna saw nothing but two notes on the coffee table. They were from Henry and her father. Her father's note said that he would be working late yet again, but that he promised to get Anna something special for her birthday. Henry's note said that he was spending the day with Riff, Graziella and Velma.

Anna threw the notes away in frustration, before eating breakfast and taking a shower. By that time, it was one o'clock, since Anna slept in till eleven.

Bored out of her mind, Anna walked down to Doc's. When Doc saw her, his eyes lit up and he smiled.

"Hey, sweetie. I heard it's your birthday."

"It is. Who told you?"

"Baby John. He told me to tell you happy birthday, sine he's busy with A-Rab today." He then put a soda on the table for her with a cookie.

Anna smile at him. "Thanks, Doc." He smiled back before turning around and going back to work.

Anna sat there and drank her Coca-Cola slowly, not wanting to leave and go back to her house. She ate her cookie slowly, letting each bite dissolve a little before chewing.

Anna felt a breeze as the door opened, and looked to see who came in. Action walked in and sat at the counter, next to Anna. Anna looked down at her soda, and stayed silent. She stayed quiet for all of ten seconds, then looked up at him.

"Action…"

He looked at her and waited for her to speak.

But the words wouldn't come to her mouth. She looked back down at her Coca-Cola and let out a small, nervous breath.

"Do you wanna go see a movie?" It came out of nowhere, so Anna wasn't completely sure that it was Action who said it. He looked at her, waiting again for her to speak.

"I'd…love to."

He nodded at her and hopped down from the stool. She grabbed her sweatshirt and followed him out the door to the movie theater. They were quiet all the way there, and even through the movie. Action had his arm around her seat the entire time.

_So we're back to this again I guess._

When they were walking back from the theater, Anna finally broke.

"Action, I'm sorry! I can't even begin to explain how much I've missed you. I shouldn't have told you that we weren't gonna happen, 'cause I really wanted us to. And I still do. And I know you didn't mean what you said, and…"

Anna realized that they had stopped by a bakery. Action walked in without Anna and bought a cupcake and a small candle.

He walked out of the bakery with the cupcake and candle in a bag. Her put his arm around her shoulders and led them home. She stayed quiet, mostly because she was in shock. She could not believe that Action had remembered it was her birthday.

They went into her dark house, and sat on the couch. He took out the cupcake and candle for her.

"How did you know?"

"I just did. You did this last year with your brother."

Anna nodded wordlessly. Action took out a match and lit the candle with it. The house was dark, besides the street lamps and the candle giving them the little light they had.

"Happy birthday, Anna." She looked up at him.

_He's perfect. How could I ever have let him go? Any risk is worth it. He's worth it. Oh God, I think I love him._

Closing her eyes, she blew out her candle, making her wish.

When she opened her eyes, Action's face was right there.

"I'm sorry, Anna."

"You have nothing to be sorry for."

"I shouldn't have called you…"

"I don't care. It's all done."

He nodded before putting one of his hands behind her neck. She got slight chills when he did this. He brought her face towards his.

But he didn't have to do all the work. Anna sped up the process and put her lips to his.

When they had been kissing for a few minutes, Action had wrapped his arms around her waist and brought her closer. Anna's arms wound around his neck and she held on tightly.

After who knows how much longer, Anna's back was against the sofa, while Action hovered over her. They continued this for a while, barely detaching their lips from one another.

When he pulled away for a second, he kissed around her cheek and neck. She breathed heavily, trying to catch her breath.

Anna realized that how he was kissing her was a lot sweeter than she could have ever imagined. She always imagined that he would be a good kisser, and found that she was right when he kissed her that first time in summer. But she had never expected him to be as slow and gentle as he was being with her. Her heart fluttered at the thought of this side of Action that she had never truly known.

They kissed like this for maybe an hour, maybe three. It didn't matter to Anna. At least not until she heard the door knob click. Pulling away as quickly as he could, Action grabbed Anna's hand and they ran to her room. She shut the door and leaned against it next to Action, both of them out of breath.

They took one look at each other and began laughing quietly. He grabbed her around the waist and buried his face in her neck as he laughed. His breath tickled her, which made her laugh harder. She put a hand over her mouth to muffle her laughter.

There was a knock on her door, which ended all laughter. Anna dove for her bed while Action ran to the window. Once he got outside, he crouched so he was hidden. After another knock, Anna's door opened and her dad walked in with the cupcake, which had gone uneaten. Seeing that Anna was "asleep," Anna's father gave her a kiss on the forehead before leaving and closing the door.

Anna sat up as Action crawled back through the window. She searched for his hand and grabbed it once she found it. They lay down on the bed looking at each other.

_I can't believe this is actually happening. Finally._

Action's arm went around Anna's waist and he kissed her softly. Once he pulled away, he leaned his forehead against hers. Her hand went up to his face, and she stroked it with her fingers softly.

"Anna?"

"Mm-hmm?"

"What're we gonna do?"

"What do you mean?"

"About Ice. He don't want me goin' steady with you."

"Is that what we are? Going steady?"

Action smiled at this. "Yeah. If you wanna."

At this, Anna kissed him. "Of course I do."

"Well, what're we gonna do about your brother then?"

"We're not gonna tell him. At least not yet."

"You sure that's gonna work?"

"What, now you're scared? What happened to taking a risk?"

"I ain't scared," he mumbled. Anna laughed quietly and put her face into his neck.

"We'll make it work. I promise."

"'Kay."

They stayed there for a while. It was only when they heard the front door open again and heard Henry's voice talking to their father that Action left. He kissed her again and snuck out the window.

Anna lay down in her bed, touching her slightly swollen lips. They tingled just the slightest bit, probably a little numb from the swelling. Anna smiled at the thought. She never understood why other teenagers enjoyed kissing so much, until that moment. Anna began thinking about Henry and Velma making out all the time.

_So this is why they do it. Wow. Just, wow._

She thought about Henry, how angry he would be if he found out, and how she would have to keep it a secret from him.

_Stop,_ Anna chastised herself. _You will not ruin this. Worry about it tomorrow. Right now, all I need to worry about is when I get to see him again._

With that thought in mind, Anna closed her eyes and slept, her lips still tingling with Action's touch.

**Corny? Why yes, yes it is! But you know you love it! Another two chapters in one day! I know it moved kind of fast, but I pretty much just typed this non-stop and I just wanted to get this chapter out. Anyway, hope you enjoyed the AnnaxAction lovin'! **


	8. Chapter 6

Anna woke up the next morning to the smell of bacon, which she hadn't had in over a year. She sprung out of her bed and ran to the kitchen and was greeted by the rare sight of her father making breakfast.

"Dad! You're cooking?" She hadn't seen her dad cook since she was ten.

Her father looked back at her and smiled. "Well I didn't get to say happy birthday to you yesterday, so I figured I would do this for you."

Anna smiled at this. Her dad must have been exhausted, judging from the bags under his eyes. He worked hard every day, and still did little things like dishes and leave notes around for Anna that made her days better.

She went into the living room and saw Henry laying on the sofa listening to the radio. She sat down at his feet and he sat up immediately. When he saw her, he sighed.

"I'm sorry I wasn't here yesterday, Anna."

"I can't believe you forgot my birthday."

"I know. And I'm gonna make it up to ya'. Wanna go to the movies tonight?"

"I went to the movies yesterday. And it's a school night, so no."

"Who'd you go with?"

Anna then told her first lie to Henry. "Nobody. I went by myself. Then I bought myself a cupcake, but I fell asleep after I blew the candle out. I woke up later and went back to bed."

Anna waited for any signs of suspicion from Henry, but he just shook his head and said, "You shouldn't go walkin' by yourself when it starts getting' darker. And I'm sorry we didn't get to do our thing. I'll make it up to you. I promise."

Anna nodded and went to the kitchen, where her father was just finishing breakfast.

They ate in silence, with her father reading the newspaper and drinking coffee, Henry shoveling the food into his mouth, and Anna trying to avoid looking at Henry, fearing that he would be able to see right through her.

When she finished eating, she went to pick up the dishes and wash them, but her father shook his head and made Henry do them. With nothing else to do, Anna went back to her room, intending to sit and read for a little while.

What she did not expect was Action to be crawling in through the window. When he heard her come in, he jolted and fell into her room. She closed the door quickly, hoping that her father hadn't seen him.

"Action," she whispered. "What the hell are you doing right now?"

He smirked as he got up and sauntered over to Anna. He grabbed her waist and pulled her against him.

"Hey," he said nonchalantly.

"Hi," she said before grabbing his face and kissing him.

Remembering that her brother and father were just outside, Anna pulled away and led Action back to the fire escape. They went a few steps and sat. He put his arm around her waist loosely and leaned back against the steps.

"What are you doin' today?"

"I don't know. Henry wanted to see a movie, but I told him I saw one yesterday."

"Did you tell him I took ya'?

"Of course not!"

"Cool it. I'm just makin' sure."

Anna thought it was odd how he was the one telling her to cool it, when everyone on the entire West side knew he had a horrible temper.

"Well," Action continued, "if you ain't doin' anything today, I figured we could go somewhere."

"Well, what would I tell Henry and my dad? And where would we go? I'd need an alibi."

Action leaned in so his face was closer to hers. "Weren't you the one tellin' me not to worry last night? We're gonna be fine."

Anna nodded. "Okay. But I need to tell someone about us."

"What would you wanna do that for?"

"So someone can back up my stories."

"Fine. Who you gonna tell?"

"I figured I could tell Minnie and John."

"We ain't tellin' Baby John. He ain't gonna keep his mouth shut if Ice is grillin' him."

"Action, he's my best friend. I have to tell him."

Action sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Okay. But you tell him that he better keep his mouth shut."

Anna nodded and rolled her eyes. "Well duh."

Action leaned in and kissed her. They stayed outside for a few more minutes before Anna told him that she had to go back inside.

"I'll go down to Doc's later and meet you there," Anna said before going up to her apartment.

So, when the time came for her to go to Doc's, since her dad was napping on the sofa, Anna tried to get to the door quickly without being seen. Unfortunately, Henry saw her and asked where she was going.

"I wanted to go down to Doc's and see if John and Minnie were there," she said smoothly.

_I can't believe I'm so good at lying. It's kind of scary, really._

"I'll come with ya'," Henry said enthusiastically.

Anna's face fell just the slightest bit at that. She quickly smiled and said, "Okay," in as chipper a voice as she could manage.

They walked down to Doc's. Upon arriving, Anna noticed that Doc's was pretty busy, which was really weird for a Sunday. Then she realized what was going on. She looked at Henry with slight horror in her eyes.

"Henry, no."

"Happy Birthday, Anna!" Velma and Graziella screamed this out. Anna put her hand in front of her face as she was turning red and let out a large groan. Velma ran up to her and led her to the back table, where Minnie, John, A-Rab, and Riff were sitting.

Once Anna sat down, she said flatly, "You guys are a day late. Just so you know."

Everyone laughed at this, thinking she was joking. Anna looked over to the table next to hers and saw Action sitting there surrounded by the other Jets. He locked eyes with her and winked. She smiled slightly at him and turned her head to look towards where the back door and bathrooms were. She looked back at him and nodded. Comprehending what she was saying, Action took a cigarette out of his pocket and went outside. Anna got up and said she had to use the bathroom.

"I'll come with you," Minnie said.

Anna was going to tell her no, wanting to go outside just so she could be with Action alone for a little bit. But she realized that she would have to tell Minnie at some point, so she nodded and the girls walked towards the bathrooms.

When Anna walked past the bathrooms, Minnie gave her a puzzled look. Anna just shook her head and motioned for Minnie to follow her out the back door into the alley. They walked up the steps to see Action smoking a cigarette leaning against the wall. When he saw Anna, he threw his cigarette onto the ground and went to grab her waist so he could pull her in for a kiss. When he saw Minnie, he pulled away from the kiss, but held onto her waist.

Minnie looked on in shock. He jaw had dropped, and her eyes were wide.

"Anna…what…I mean how…huh?"

Anna laughed a little at Minnie's lack of articulation.

"Action and I are together now. And I wanted to tell you. But you can't tell anyone."

"Why are you guys keepin' it a secret?"

"'Cause Henry will be pissed if he finds out."

"You mean when he finds out?" Anna looked at Action when he said this and sighed.

"Yeah, I guess."

"Well, shouldn't you tell him then? Won't he get angrier when he finds out you've been hiding it from him?" Minnie made a good point, but Anna couldn't tell Henry about her and Action.

"I'll tell him eventually. After I tell Velma. She'll help me out."

"Okay, Anna. I hope you guys know what you're doin', though."

Anna nodded at her. "We'll be fine. Thanks, Minnie."

Minnie nodded. "So, I guess I'll wait inside till you're done here. Then we can walk together so people won't be suspicious."

Without waiting for a reply, Minnie walked down the stairs. Once she was out of sight, Action turned Anna toward him and kissed her hard. Anna's arms went up around his neck and he pulled him down a little so she wouldn't have to strain her neck tilting it up. Action responded to this by lifting Anna a few inches off the ground so she was eyes level with him, never pulling away.

They continued this for another minute before hearing someone clear their throat. Expecting to see Minnie, they pulled away while still holding each other. Instead, they saw Snowboy with a mischievous look on his face.

"Well, what do we got here?"

"Shit," Anna muttered as soon as she saw him. She tried to pull away, but Action held onto her waist firmly and held tightly onto her waist.

"What are you gonna do, huh, Snowboy? 'Cause, man, I swear if you tell, I'll beat ya'"

Snowboy laughed at this. "Relax, man. I ain't gonna tell. I came back to see if I could bum a cigarette off ya'."

"No," Action said.

"Well, that's too bad, ain't it? I guess I'll have to get one from Ice. Maybe, when he asks why ya' didn't give me one, I'll have to tell him that you were a little busy with his little sister."

Action pulled away quickly and strode over to Snowboy. Once he was over there, Action grabbed his shirt and pulled the taller boy down to his level.

"I swear if you tell Snowboy, you're gonna find your head mysteriously bein' bashed against a brick wall."

There was a flicker of fear in Snowboy's eyes, but he quickly masked it with his humor and said, "Just jokin', Action, buddy. Now why would I wanna do that to our sweet little Anna?"

Action let go of Snowboy's shirt and Snowboy made his way down the stairs. Action looked at Anna, who had a concerned look on her face. Action looked away from her and went to grab another cigarette from his pocket and put it in his mouth. Anna walked by him and took it out, planting a small kiss on his lips.

"Relax," she said quietly before pecking his throat.

Minnie walked up the stairs holding John's hand.

"Time for cake, Anna," John said. Then he noticed how close Anna and Action were.

"Anna, why're you so close to him? Don't your brother want you away from him?"

Anna looked at him guiltily while Action looked down at his shoes. John looked at Minnie, whose look mirrored Anna's. When it clicked in his mind, John looked shocked at first, then a little hurt, then angry.

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER?"

Out of nowhere, John lunged for Action and punched him in the face. Action, too shocked to even retaliate, held his lip.

"John," Anna shrieked. "He didn't do anything to me that I didn't want!"

John gave her a crazed look before pushing Action up against the wall, holding him by his shirt. He bent down to Action's face and glared at him.

"Did you…with her?"

Action shook his head, pushing John away from him.

"No man. Now back the hell off before I hit ya'!"

"Action!"

"What? He hit me first, Anna!"

Anna sighed heavily before going up to John, who looked just the slightest bit scared that Action would hit him.

"John, you'll keep it a secret, won't you? Just for a little bit? Just until I tell Henry."

"Anna, he ain't gonna like it if he finds out that I know."

"Then don't tell him," Action interrupted.

"Action, shut up," Anna snapped. "John, please. I promise I'll try to tell Henry soon. I just need to take a little time before I tell him."

"Fine. But if he asks me what's goin' on with ya', what do I say?"

"You shrug your shoulders. And it's not like he'll notice anyway. He's gonna be busy with Velma."

"Since when? He ain't been hangin' with her as much."

"Sicnce I'm gonna ask her to keep him distracted. All I need you and Minnie to do is cover up for me whenever I'm with him."

"Wouldn't it be easier just to tell him?"

"John, it's complicated, no matter what. I'm just gonna have to hide this for a while though. You'll help me, won't you?"

John sighed. "Fine. I will. But if he hurts you, I swear I'll…"

"You'll what?" Action had interjected yet again.

"Oh my God, Action. Shush!" Anna looked back to John and said, "So, it's time for cake?"

John nodded and he and Minnie began to walk down the stairs. Anna gave Action's hand a squeeze before following them down.

_I just have to keep it a secret for a little while. He won't find out for a while. And Velma will help me. Everything will be fine._

When Anna saw Henry and her father holding a small, lit up cake for her, Anna's thoughts shifted.

_Oh God. How can I keep this a secret from them? They'll hate me if…when they find out. Damn it._

When everyone was done singing their wildly out of tune rendition of "Happy Birthday," Anna made her wish.

_I wish that Henry would let Action and I be together._

Anna blew out her candle, and prayed that her kiss would be granted.

**I did it! Another chapter! Yeahhhhh! So, hope you enjoyed. That is all I have to say for now.**


	9. Chapter 7

**So, anyway, before I start the chapter, I would like to apologize for any typos I have had. I don't really look over the chapters more than once, so if there are some, I usually catch them after I have published the chapter. And I'm too lazy to go back and look. Sorry. Anyway, on with the chapter!**

On the walk to school the next day, Henry and Anna ran into John, Minnie, and Velma as soon as they walked out of the apartment building. Henry put his arm around Velma's waist and they walked out in front right away. Minnie and John went to catch up to Velma and Henry, but Anna stood back for a few seconds. When Action walked out of the building, she smiled at him and he smiled back.

He went to walk besides her. As soon as all the other Jets came out and caught up with Henry and Velma, Anna and Action held hands and walked behind everyone else. Anna never considered herself to be the kind of girl that would hold hands with anyone. Then again, she never thought that she would lie to her brother about being with a guy, but Action seemed to be proving a lot of things wrong.

When they arrived at the school, Anna made sure no one was looking before pecking Action on the cheek and rushing into the school to catch up with Minnie.

One she caught up with Minnie, they walked to first hour together.

"So," Minnie said quietly, "do you really think it's gonna work out?

"What kind of question is that?"

"I just mean that he is older than you, and he'll probably want to move on faster than you may be comfortable with. Not to mention that you have to keep it all hidden from your brother."

"Minnie?"

"Yeah?"

"Shut up. You're worrying more than me."

"I'm just lookin' out for you. And when are you gonna tell Velma?"

"Eventually."

"Or how about now?"

Anna looked down the hall to see Velma walking up to her. And she looked pissed.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Tell you what?"

"Don't give me that, Anna. You and Action."

"I was gonna tell you today."

"Bullshit."

"Okay, not today. Mostly because I didn't want you to be angry."

"And why would I be angry? I want ya' to go out with him. You guys are good together. Plus he's definitely a good lookin' fella' and…"

"Velma?"

"Yeah?"

"He's my boyfriend, and you're dating my brother. Shut up."

Velma laughed. "I'm kiddin', sweetie. So, how can I help ya' in this?"

"Would you be willing to keep my brother busy tonight?"

Velma nodded. "I can think of some ways. But when are ya' gonna tell him?"

"Eventually. I just want to wait a while to see if he'll cool down a bit." Then Anna though of something. "How did you know about Action and I?"

"I saw ya' kiss him on the cheek."

"How? I made sure no one was looking."

"Well, I stayed back and saw it. You're lucky no one else saw it. So, who else knows?"

"John and Minnie. Oh, and Snowboy."

"You told Snowboy?"

"Hell no! He saw Action and I in the alley kissing."

Velma smiled at this. "You're just like your brother."

Anna put her hands over her ears and shook her head. "Please, say no more."

Velma laughed till she heard the bell ring. Then the two girls walked to their classes.

When lunch came around, Anna was sitting at her usual table till she saw Action walk in, which was weird because she knew that Action for sure did not have that lunch hour. He walked to her table, which was filled with the other girls who sat there, and planted a kiss on Anna's cheek.

All of the other girls except for Minnie were staring in shock and awe at Action's display. Anna knew that they had probably heard things about him, but she decided she didn't care. Especially when he asked if she wanted to go somewhere else. She heard the girls at the table begin to speak in hushed tones as soon as she got up.

Action had his arm around Anna and led her to the currently empty courtyard in the back of the school. As soon as Action sat on a bench, he pulled Anna into his lap and nuzzled his face into her neck. She kissed his head and they stayed quiet for a few minutes.

"So, what class are you skipping?"

"I don't even know."

Anna chuckled at this, then pulled his face to look at her.

"You really shouldn't skip class too much. But I do appreciate you getting me out of there."

He smiled at this and kissed her. "I'll try not to do it more than once a week. Sound good?"

Anna nodded and kissed him again. When she pulled away, Action began kissing along her jaw and neck. They were small pecks, but they sent chills all over Anna's body, which formed goose bumps on her arm. She then realized that it was pretty cold outside and she wasn't wearing a sweater. She shivered a little, and Action pulled away.

"You cold?"

Anna nodded and leaned into Action's body. He wrapped his arms around her body and rubbed his hands up and down her arms.

"This is nice," Anna said. "We usually always get interrupted."

Action chuckled and rested his chin on her shoulder.

"So, Velma knows."

"You told her?"

"No, she saw us. She's gonna help, though. Keep Henry distracted for a little bit. I figured I could go up to your place tonight."

"Why don't we just stay at yours?"

"'Cause I've never seen your whole apartment before. And I figured we would have more privacy there since people always burst into my place."

"My place is a mess."

"Why would I care?"

"I don't want you goin' there."

"Action, it's fine. I want to see your place. I don't care how messy it is. Just show me around and then we can stay in your room."

"I got homework I need ya' to help me on. Ya' can't help me at my house."

"Action, you never do homework."

"Anna, please." He kissed her neck again, desperately wanting to get off the subject, but Anna wouldn't budge.

"Action, we're going to your house, otherwise I'm not kissing you for the rest of the night."

Action laughed at this. "I doubt you could do that."

"Oh please, it wouldn't be that hard."

"You sure?"

As soon as she said she wouldn't kiss him, Anna knew that she was lying. There was something about kissing him that made her feel so close to him, like she was getting to know him better by doing it. She felt that he was opening up to her a whole different side of him. A side that she was beginning to fall in love with.

"I could last," she lied.

Action groaned. "Fine. We'll go to my place. But I ain't happy about it."

Anna kissed his forehead and rested hers against his. "Thank you," she whispered. He ran his fingers up and down her back while she stroked his shoulder blade with her thumb.

Of course, some one always had to interrupt. As soon as they heard the footsteps, Anna and Action looked up to see who was there. Richard looked at them in shock.

"Anna, what are you doing?"

"Richard, what are you doing out here?"

"I come out here for lunch sometimes. What are you doing with that thug?"

"It's not any of your business."

"It is when it deals with you."

"Richard, when have I ever given you the hint that I like you? Whenever you try to flirt with me, I laugh. Whenever you try to sit by me, I move away. Why can't you just butt out and leave me alone?"

Richard's face fell at this. "Well, even if you don't like me, I'm not gonna let this happen. He's not good for you."

"Richard, you don't even know him. And you sure as hell don't know me."

"Anna, this guy's in a gang."

"Oh, there's a shocker," Anna said sarcastically.

"You shouldn't be with him. He's gonna hurt you."

Action rose off the bench and strode over to Richard while grabbing him by his collar.

"The only person I'm gonna hurt is you if you don't stay away from my girl."

"See, Anna? He's threatening me!"

"Beat it. Now. Or else."

Looking one last time at Anna, Richard fled back to the school. Action sat on the bench and ran his hand over his face and through his hair.

"He's gonna tell everyone, ain't he?"

"I don't think he's stupid enough to tell. Then again, he was stupid enough to believe that I liked him. I guess we'll find out."

"So much for a secret relationship."

Anna nodded and sat next to him. She grabbed his hand and kissed it, then put her head on his shoulder. When the bell rang, they kissed each other one last time, ready to face whatever might come their way.

**Who did four chapters in one weekend? This girl! I know I've said it before, but try not to get used to it. Sadly, I do have a life, so I can't update all the time. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!**


	10. Chapter 8

After school, Anna went to her locker and waited for Minnie. Once Minnie arrived, they walked to Anna's house together, where John was waiting.

"What took ya' so long?"

"I was waiting for Anna," Minnie said.

"So, will you guys be okay here by yourselves for a little bit?"

Minnie and John nodded. "Great," Anna said. She went to her room and climbed out onto the fire escape. As soon as Anna left the room, Minnie took John's face and brought his lips to hers. She planned on having a good time with her boyfriend as well.

When Anna knocked on Action's window, he went and opened it. Then he helped her in and led her to the door.

"This ain't how I wanted you to meet her."

"Meet who?"

"My mom."

Anna froze at this. She had never seen any of Action's family since she met him. In fact, he never even mentioned that he had any family. Anna suddenly realized that she didn't know much about the guy she was falling in love with.

As Action went to open the door, Anna grabbed his wrist and said, "Wait."

Action looked at her questioningly. Anna continued.

"I don't know anything about your mother. And I didn't even wear anything nice."

"She won't care."

"I care. I want to look nice when I meet your mother. I want her to like me."

"It don't matter what she thinks."

"Maybe not to you."

Action sighed. "If you don't wanna meet her, just say so."

"No, I do. I just want to meet her when you want me to. I don't know anything about her. And I sort of forgot the fact that your parents might be home."

"Just my mom. My dad ain't in the picture no more."

Anna nodded at this. "Do you have any siblings?"

"I got an older brother."

"What's he like?"

"Like my old man."

"And what's your dad like?"

"Can we stop talkin' about this?" Action's voice had risen, so Anna could tell that she was beginning to get on his nerves.

"Okay. For now. But I want to meet your mother at some point, just so you know."

Action sat down on his bed. "Fine."

Anna stood in front of Action and wrapped her arms around his neck. She bent down so she was eye to eye with him.

"Don't be mad at me," she said softly. "Please."

Action nodded and pulled her onto the bed so she was straddling his lap. He moved his hands down to her lower back and rubbed circles into her back while kissing her slowly.

Anna pressed against him when their kissing began to get more heated. He wrapped his arms around her waist and held on tightly. Anna noticed that her body began to heat up as she kept trying to get closer to Action. She put her hands on his shoulders before moving them around so she could take a mental picture of his muscles.

Action suddenly flipped Anna so that her back was to the bed and began kissing down her neck to her now exposed shoulder. Anna hadn't realized till that moment that the sleeves of her dress were pushed down. He had been kissing and lightly nipping one part of her shoulder for a while, and Anna realized that he was trying to give her a hickey.

Anna cried out, "Action! Cut that out!"

She tried to push him off, but he held on tighter and began pecking around her neck, which tickled her. She giggled loudly and her face was turning redder with each giggle.

Once her giggles subsided, Anna wiped tears from her eyes from laughing so hard and took deep breaths. Action was smirking at her as she did this.

"So," she said, "That was interesting."

"Yeah, it was."

"You realize that I'm going to have to cover this, don't you?"

"No one's gonna see it. It's almost November. You're gonna be wearin' sweaters anyway."

Anna shook her head. "You are so lucky that I can cover this."

She leaned in to kiss him again, but someone burst through the door. Anna whipped her head around and stared at the woman who had busted through the door.

"Arthur," the woman said, "what the hell is goin' on in here?"

"Mom," Action said. It was all he said, even as she looked at him expectantly.

He just stared at her, so Anna cut in.

"Hello, ma'am. My name is Anna Jones. I'm a…"

_A what? Do I say friend or girlfriend? Oh God._

"I know your son."

"Well I can see that. What are you two doin' on his bed?"

"Ma', can't you just butt out?"

"Not if you're doin' what I think you're doin' in my house!"

"Don't give me that! You do it all the time! And we ain't doin' that anyway!"

"Well you were gettin' close. And you will not talk to me that way!"

Action's mom walked out the room and slammed the door. Anna and Action were quiet for a few seconds before she said, "Well, I guess I should go."

"Yeah. Whatever."

Anna put her hand on his shoulder, which he shook off. Sighing, Anna kissed his cheek and made it to the window before mumbling, "I'm sorry."

She climbed out the window and went up to her room. When she got in the living room, she saw Minnie and John on the couch together kissing. Anna tip toed back to her room and closed the door lightly.

She flopped down onto her bed and lay there for a few minutes before looking in her mirror. She noticed that her hair was in slight disarray and that her clothes were wrinkled.

She moved the sleeve down on her shoulder and observed the mark Action had made that was beginning to bruise.

_Bastard._

Anna put her sleeve back up and sat back down on her bed. She pulled her bag off the ground and began on her homework.

The encounter Anna had with Action's mother kept entering her mind. She noticed how much Action took after his mother. He had her lips and dark eyes, along with her shorter height and tanner skin. She could only assume that his built frame and nose were from his father.

She thought about the anger that had flashed in her eyes when she saw Anna on his bed.

_Is that where he gets it?_

She thought about how his name was Arthur.

_What's his last name then?_

She thought about how he had a brother.

_I wonder if his brother is like an older version of Action. Or if they are polar opposites._

She thought about his father.

_Why isn't he around? Is he in jail, or did he die?_

The questions were flooding her mind with so much force that she just threw her book against the door. It smacked against the door and hit the floor with a loud thud that shook her room.

A few seconds later, there was a knock on her door.

"Anna, what's wrong?"

"Nothing, Minnie."

"Wanna talk about it?"

"Not really."

"Okay. I and John are gonna head out. You gonna be okay?"

"Yeah. I'll be fine."

She heard the front door close a minute later. Anna went to pick up her book when she heard another knock on her door.

"Anna. Open up, sweetie," Velma called in her oh-so-smooth voice.

Anna opened the door for her and let her in.

"So, what happened?"

"This did," Anna said, pulling her sleeve down and revealing the hickey.

"Oh my God!" Velma screeched this loudly.

"Velma, shush! What if Henry hears?"

Velma had to cover her mouth with her hand to muffle the giggling. Once she had stopped, Velma took a deep breath.

"Is that all that happened, then?"

"Well, not exactly."

So Anna explained how his mother came in and caught her on his bed. And how she didn't know much about Action.

"Well, you ain't gonna start off a relationship knowin' everything about a fella'."

"I know that. But I feel like I don't even know him at all. I didn't even know his real name was Arthur. And that he has a brother."

"Well that's why you're goin' steady with him. To get to know him better."

There was a knock on the door again.

"Velma, want me to walk you home?"

Velma nodded, then remembered that Henry couldn't see her through the door.

"Sure, honey. Just give me a sec'."

Velma reached into her bag and pulled out some powder and concealer.

"Anytime he makes them visible," she whispered, "use this."

Anna nodded, so Velma got up and left.

Once Velma left, Anna took one last look at her hickey before going out and making dinner.

Later that night, when everyone had fallen asleep, Anna went out to the fire escape only to hear footsteps above her. Action appeared and took Anna's hand wordlessly. They walked down a little bit before sitting.

Neither of them talked for a little while. So Anna, figuring that Action wouldn't speak until she did, said, "Action, I am so sorry."

"What are ya' sorry for?"

"I'm not really sure, to be honest. It just felt like the right thing to say."

Action chuckled a little at this. "Well, I'm sorry about my mom."

"And?"

"I ain't gonna apologize for the hickey."

"Action!"

"What? You liked gettin' it as much as I like givin' it. It's like a gift."

Anna shook her head. "It's huge!"

"Good," he said. Then he leaned in and kissed her for a little bit.

"Action?"

"Yeah?"

"What's your last name?"

"Herman."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"What's your mom's name?"

"Why are you askin' me all these questions?"

"Because I don't know you at all! I want to know about your family and your past and what you want and all that stuff. I want you to tell me things."

Action was silent for a little bit after this. Then he spoke.

"My mom's name is Margaret."

They stayed quiet yet again.

"My full name is Johanna."

"What?"

"Yeah. I hate it. That's why I go by Anna."

"I like Johanna."

"Well don't call me that. And just so you know, you are the only person outside of my brother and my dad that know this. You better keep it a secret."

"Why did you tell me?"

"Because I want to be honest with you. This isn't gonna work out if we aren't telling each other things. I don't need to know everything about you, but you have to try and tell me things."

Action sighed. "I don't want ya' to try and make me do this."

"I won't make you do anything. But I can't stay with you if you won't tell me things."

"That ain't fair."

"I told you my real name. And you won't even talk about the fact that you have a brother. Don't talk to me about fairness."

"Johanna."

"Arthur."

Action sighed again, then looked at Anna. "I promise I'll tell you stuff. I swear I will. But you gotta give me time. I ain't used to people carin' about all that stuff."

"Well I care about you." It was the closest thing Anna could say to 'I love you.'

Action pulled her closer and had his arms around her. "Good. 'Cause I need you to."

For another fifteen minutes, they sat there like that, holding one another and not saying anything. They left all of their un-said truths for another day, realizing that once they told one another everything, their relationship would never be the same.


	11. Chapter 9

It had been a few weeks since Anna and Action had begun going out. Most days, Action would go over to Anna's after school. They would go into Anna's room, where she would begin doing her homework while Action would try distracting her. It usually worked.

Henry hadn't found out since Velma was doing a fantastic job on distracting him. Once, however, Velma and Henry had gotten home earlier than usual, and Velma walked in on Anna and Action. Velma began to giggle upon seeing them. Anna got up and pushed Velma out of the room and rushed to close the door.

So, Henry hadn't found out yet. And Anna was feeling guilty about it. Really guilty. She dreamt about him finding out from Richard or Snowboy. Then Henry would get really angry and he would begin throwing stuff around a room or get in a car and crash it into a building.

Anna knew that these were all unlikely situations, but she couldn't really control her thoughts and her dreams. So Anna decided to finally tell Henry and stop her mind from going crazier.

She told Velma that her distraction powers would not be needed for the day, and Velma immediately understood what Anna was going to do. She nodded and let Anna take Henry up to their apartment.

"Henry," Anna said once they got in their living room, "I need to tell you something."

Henry's eyes immediately widened. He looked at Anna who was nervously fidgeting.

"Hey, cool it! I haven't even told you yet."

"Well that ain't a way to start this off then if you don't expect me to flip out!"

"Well how do you want me to start it? 'So, how about that walk home? I was pretty cold. Oh, and I gotta tell you something!'"

"Just tell me, Anna."

She took a deep breath and spoke quickly.

"I'm seeing someone!"

"What?"

She took a deeper breath and spoke again, this time more slowly.

"I'm seeing someone. As in I'm going steady with someone."

Henry was quiet for a few seconds before he spoke. "That's it? You got me all worked up for nothin'?"

"But I haven't even told you who I'm seeing!"

"Well he can't be that bad. You ain't stupid enough to date anyone bad. I trust ya'. You're growin' up and I know that you're gonna make good choices."

Anna, no longer able to stand his talking, blurted out, "I'm dating Action!"

Henry was quiet yet again. His eyes flashed with confusion which quickly turned to realization and fury. He suddenly got up and stormed out the door. Anna sat quietly for a second, before realizing with horror that Henry wasn't going downstairs.

Anna ran out the door and began sprinting up the stairs after Henry. She caught up with him as he was about to approach the door.

"Henry, wait!" she yelled out.

Of course, she was a little late, as usual. Action had already opened the door and Henry had already punched his face. Action stumbled back a little and put his hand up to his mouth. Henry stepped into Action's apartment and grabbed him by his collar, pushing him up against the wall.

"Dammit, Action! I told ya' to stay away from her! Now you better listen!" He raised his hand to punch Action again, but Action squirmed out of his grip and used his height to his advantage by ramming his head into Henry's stomach. He tackled Henry out into the hall.

When Henry was on the ground, dazed, Action landed a punch on the taller boy's jaw. Soon, the boys were wrestling each other around the hallway. Anna, who had been standing there for a few minutes, watching the scene unfold in horror, decided it was time to intervene.

She stormed over and took Action's shoulders. Using all her might, she pulled Action off her brother. She then stepped into the two boys who were breathing heavily and glaring at each other.

"Are you guys done now?"

They both looked up at her and nodded.

"Good. Now when are you going to grow up and realize that hitting someone probably isn't the best way to solve your problems?"

Henry looked down into his lap, not speaking, so Anna continued.

"What is so wrong about me dating Action? He treats me fine, if that's what you're worried about."

"He ain't right for you. You deserve better."

"Don't you think that's my choice? I think I am perfectly capable of choosing who I should date. Weren't you saying before that you trust me?"

"Well that was before I knew you were with him."

"Why should that change anything? I'm still the same person whether I'm with Action or not."

"Anna, I don't trust him."

"Hey man, I'm right here!"

Anna had forgotten that Action was there. She went over to him and pulled him up, not letting go of his hand once he was standing.

"You don't have to trust him, because I already do. You just need to trust me."

Henry shook his head. "Anna, I can't let you date him."

"I wasn't asking your permission. I am dating Action. So you're just gonna' have to deal with it."

Henry waited before reluctantly nodding. "Fine. I can accept it." He turned his gaze to Action. "But if you hurt her, I swear I'll…"

"Yeah, I think he gets it. Now you guys better apologize to each other."

"Why do I have to apologize? He hit me first!" Action said this with an incredulous look on his face.

"You hit him back."

"Well I wasn't gonna' let him keep hittin' me."

"Action," Anna said in a warning tone.

"Fine."

The boys walked up to one another and said sorry quietly.

"What was that? I didn't hear you guys."

They said sorry a little louder and shook hands.

"See? That wasn't so hard. Now I have to go upstairs and work on some homework. I'll see you tomorrow, Action."

She contemplated kissing him, but she decided that she probably shouldn't in front of her angry brother. She gave Action's hand a squeeze before going back up to her apartment. Henry soon followed her and was sitting across from her at the kitchen table.

"How long have ya' been with him?"

"About three weeks."

"And are ya' happy?"

"Yes. I'm very happy."

"Good."

"Henry."

"Yeah?"

"Thank you for letting me be with him."

"I thought it didn't matter what I say."

"Of course it matters. I don't think I could've stayed with Action if you absolutely wouldn't allow it."

Henry nodded at this. "Well, if you're happy with him, then I guess it's okay. Just be careful. He's older than ya'."

"I know. It doesn't matter though."

"Maybe not yet. But it will when he turns eighteen."

"Well, he's not even seventeen yet. So it's okay for now."

"Still. You gotta be careful. Promise me you will be."

"I promise."

With that promise, Anna went into her room and shut the door. She opened her window and went up to Action's room. She looked into the window and was him with ice on his lip. She knocked on his window and waved at him once he looked at her. He got up and opened the window.

Action's arm went around her waist, getting ready to pull her into his room, but she shook her head.

"I can't stay. I just wanted to make sure you're okay."

"Ya know, I've been hit by two Jets since I've been with ya'. You're a lot of trouble."

Anna laughed at this and leaned down to kiss him. "I'm sorry about that. You're okay, though?"

"Yeah, I'm good."

"Okay."

Not knowing what else to say Anna kissed him again before pulling away.

"See you tomorrow."

"Yeah. See ya'."

Anna didn't know why she said what she did next, but it slipped off her tongue before she had a chance to filter it and think about her words.

"I love you."

She turned around quickly once she realized what she had said and ran up to her room. She was about to close the window before she heard that Action had followed her and was climbing into her room.

"Anna," he said.

"Shhh. Henry's gonna' hear you."

He walked up to her and held her and spoke quieter.

"Did you mean what you said?"

Anna nodded. "Yeah, but I don't know why I said it. I was just going to wait until you said it first. Oh God."

"Hey now," he said, taking her chin in his hand and tilting her face towards his. "Why are ya' upset about it?"

"Because this is so embarrassing. It just slipped out. I'm sorry."

"Well I ain't sorry. I'm glad ya' told me."

"Really."

"Yeah."

"Well, okay."

He walked to her window and was about to climb out, but looked back and said, "I love you, Anna."

He got out and went up to his room. Anna was stunned for a moment. She closed her window and flopped onto her bed and thought of everything that had happened in the past half an hour. But only one thought consumed her mind completely.

_He loves me._


	12. Chapter 10

Anna and Action didn't talk about what they had said to each other. They just sort of accepted it. The next day, they met up and walked to school together holding hands in front of all the Jets. Most of them tried to make crude comments, but retreated once they saw the looks Henry and Action were giving them.

Of course, the looks didn't stop Riff. When he saw Action and Anna, he walked in between them and put his arms around their shoulders.

"Well, what do we got here? Little Anna's goin' steady with Action?"

Anna gave him an annoyed look, trying to send him a signal that Riff had better shut up. Riff, of course, ignored her and continued.

"Action, when did this start happenin', buddy? Didn't know you was one to rob the cradle!"

Anna's annoyance turned to anger and she stormed off.

"Oh come one, Anna," Riff yelled out, "ya' know I'm just playin'! Come back here, sweetheart!"

Anna just shook her head and walked faster. Once she had reached the school, Action had caught up with her and grabbed her arm.

"What was that all about?"

"Why is my age such a big deal for everyone?"

"It ain't for me. I don't care how young you are."

"Yes you do. I saw the look you gave when Riff made that comment. Are you embarrassed to be with me?"

"Of course I ain't! I wanna be with ya'. It's just a little hard 'cause I know I gotta' be careful with ya'."

"What does that even mean?"

"Ya' know what I mean."

"No, I really don't. Explain, please."

"I can't do things with you like I would do with girls my age 'cause you ain't as… experienced as them."

"So what? Why should that matter?"

"It don't matter. That's what I'm tryin' to say! I don't care about age. Okay?"

Anna nodded. "Okay. Fine."

"Hey, you know Riff was just messin' around, right?"

"Yeah, I guess."

Action nodded. "Okay then. I gotta' go. Want me to come to lunch today?"

Anna nodded. "Sounds good." She leaned up and went to kiss his cheek, but he shifted his face so their lips met. They stayed like that a few seconds before hearing someone clear their throat. Once they saw who it was, Anna's face flushed and Action walked away quickly.

"Henry, was that necessary?"

"You don't gotta' do that in front of everyone."

"You are not giving me a lecture on this! You're not one to talk with how you are with Velma!"

"I'm older. It's different."

"How?"

"It just is."

"That's not an excuse!"

"Well too bad. I'm older, so you gotta' listen to me."

"Bullshit!"

Henry's eyes went wide when he heard Anna say this. Anna, realizing what she had just said, walked away quickly, shaking her head.

_I can't believe I said that. I mean it's not like I haven't sworn in front of him, but I usually only say hell and damn. But should he really be surprised that I cuss? It's not like he and dad don't cuss._

Rolling her eyes, Anna walked into her class and began the day.

Later, during lunch, Action came up behind her and pulled her up, only to sit down and pull her into his lap.

"Action, you do realize there's an open seat, right?"

"So?"

Anna shook her head. "Fine."

The girls at the table were silent as they looked at Action. One girl, Gretchen, was blushing and looked down as Anna locked eyes with her. Another girl, Mary was glaring at Action.

_What the hell is that about?_

She turned to look at Action who had an amused look on his face as he looked at each of the girls.

Anna turned back to Mary, who still had a scowl on her face. Getting fed up with Mary's look, and feeling bold, Anna locked her eyes with Mary and asked, "Is there a problem, Mary?"

Mary snapped out of it and looked flustered as she shook her head. Gretchen and another girl, Laurie, giggled as Mary's face turned red.

"Good. I guess I should go then."

Anna stood up and grabbed Action's hand. Without another word, they left the cafeteria and went out to the courtyard.

"Action, why was Mary glaring at you?"

"Beats me."

"Bullshit."

"Hey now. You don't believe me?"

Anna shook her head.

"Fine," Action said. "Me and her were together before the summer started."

"Wait, was she the girl that you were with at Doc's candy store on the last day of school?"

"I don't even remember."

"Action!"

"Fine. It was her."

Anna stayed quiet for a bit. "Okay," she said finally. "I guess it doesn't really matter then."

"Why don't it matter?"

"Because you're mine now."

Action laughed at this. "What, you jealous of her?"

"No."

"Liar."

"Fine. Just a little bit. She has more…experience than I do probably."

"No she don't. Remember, I left her 'cause she couldn't kiss to save her life."

"Oh yeah. But why did you come up by me that night, then?"

"Cause I liked ya'."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I was gonna' kiss ya', don't ya' remember?"

"I thought I was just imagining it! You mean to tell me that you liked me since June and you didn't even really try anything till late July?"

"Hey, I was takin' it easy. I didn't wanna scare ya' away or anything."

"Oh, please! You thought you could scare me away? I wanted you to be flirting with me, stupid!"

"Well you didn't really do anything back, so I thought that ya' didn't want me!"

"I didn't push you away ever! If it was any other guy, I would have!"

"Good," Action said smoothly before pulling her against his chest.

She leaned up to kiss him and pulled back almost right away. "I'm still mad you waited, though," she said.

"I can live with that. We're together now, ain't we?"

Anna nodded before kissing him again.

"So, what are we doing after school?"

"I don't know. What do ya' wanna' do?"

"Can I meet your mom?"

"No. You already did, and that didn't work out."

Anna sighed. "Well, I'm going to have to actually talk to her at some point. I can't just remain that one girl who was making out with her son in his bed."

"Yeah, well, you gotta' wait."

"How about you and her come over for Thanksgiving next week?"

"She ain't gonna be home. She's got work."

"Well, are you going to come over?"

"Sure."

"Quick warning. My dad will be there, so you're going to have to deal with that."

"I've met your dad before."

"Yeah, and he didn't like you then. Now that you're my boyfriend, he's going to like you less."

"I'm used to it."

"Good. And another warning: I'm cooking the turkey."

"That's okay. You can cook."

"Not turkey. I almost burned the kitchen down last year. We had to mooch off of Tony's mom's turkey. She makes the best turkey ever."

Action smiled at this. "Well, I'm sure you'll be okay."

Action leaned down to kiss Anna before the bell rang.

"So, you'll be coming over to my house for certain?"

Action nodded.

"Okay, good," Anna said with a relieved sigh. "And Action?"

"Yeah?"

"What you said last night… you weren't just saying it just because I did, were you?"

Action grabbed her chin with one hand and kissed her again. He walked off as soon as the kiss was done.

Anna stood there for a few seconds, confused, before yelling out, "So, is that a no, then?"

**So, it's been a while. I've been super busy, and this chapter has taken me almost three weeks to finally complete. So sorry if it seems choppy. Anyway, hope you enjoy it. **


	13. Chapter 11

Anna woke up at three in the morning on Thanksgiving, and immediately tried to lie back down. When she thought about how Action would be there later, though, she jumped out of her bed and ran to the kitchen.

Anna turned on the light and began to pull everything she could out of the cupboards. Soon enough, she had the ingredients to make an apple pie. As she began to make the crust, Henry walked into the kitchen.

"What time is it?"

Anna glanced at the clock and replied, "It's four seventeen."

"Anna! Why the hell are you up?"

"Thanksgiving dinner isn't going to cook itself."

"Yeah, but still. I think it'd be alright to go to bed for another hour."

"I can't. I have to make the pie and start on the potatoes and stuffing and…oh God, what else do I need to make?"

"Turkey."

"Besides that?"

"Ham? Bread rolls? Cranberry sauce? Green bean casserole?"

Anna stopped what she was doing and gaped at Henry with her mouth open. When she tried to speak, a mix between a wail and a growl came out.

"Anna?"

Anna put her hand up to tell Henry to stop talking. When she composed herself, she spoke in a rapid flurry of words.

"How the hell am I supposed to do all that? I can't do this! I invited Action over and he has to have a good Thanksgiving and dad has to like him and…oh Jesus! A-Rab is coming too, isn't he? If I don't do this right, I'll never hear the end of it from him!"

Henry walked up to Anna and put his hands on her shoulder.

"Anna, relax. Tony and Riff are comin' over with Tony's mom. She can help ya'."

Anna looked at Henry with her eyes sparkling with gratitude.

"You are the best big brother EVER!"

Anna locked her arms around Henry's waist and was almost weeping with relief.

"Anna, cut that out. Go back to sleep." She still didn't let go. "Anna, please." She held on ever tighter. "Damn it, Anna!"

When Henry managed to loosen Anna's grip, he ran to the living room as Anna chased after him.

"Stay away from me! You're crazy!"

Anna began to giggle uncontrollably at this for some reason. She flung herself into Henry's arms again and they tumbled to the floor together. Pretty soon, both of them were laughing so hard their stomachs were in pain and they were gasping.

Their father walked out groggily. His eyes widened once he saw them.

"What are you doing?"

They tried to answer that they had no idea what they were doing between gasps, but couldn't contain the laughter long enough to answer. Finally, their father just shook his head.

"Whatever. I'm going back to sleep."

Once he left the room, Henry and Anna's laughter dwindled. But as soon as they looked at each other, they burst out laughing again, clenching their aching stomachs. Tears were rolling down Henry's face as he turned red.

"OW! Oh…ow, ow, ow…Oh God," was all Anna could manage to fit in between gasps.

This was the sight Tony and his mother were greeted with as they came in. Anna and Henry's laughter immediately subsided as they glanced at Tony's mother. Her face was a mix of shock and confusion. Tony's, however, was a look of just plain amusement.

Anna looked up at Tony and blushed lightly. Just because she loved Action didn't mean she couldn't think Tony was a good looking guy, right? When Anna looked down to see that she was still in her night gown that had a small hole in the skirt, she turned away quickly and went to put on a robe. Composing herself, she turned back around and greeted Tony's mother.

"Good morning Mrs. Wycek. Thank you so much for coming over."

"It's no problem, sweetheart. Where would you like to get started?"

Anna looked around to the kitchen and sighed.

"Honestly I have no idea. I was beginning to make apple pie, but I got side tracked."

Anna glanced over at Henry's smirking face and touched her sore abs. She would have to take a long bath that night.

"Well, that's no problem, dear. Antone will help you."

Tony's eyes flashed with irritation for a second before he smiled and said, "Sure," in his cheery voice.

She and Tony walked to the kitchen together and she resumed with the crust as he peeled the apples.

"So," Tony said, "you and Action, huh?"

Anna looked at Tony and said, "Yeah. What of it?"

Tony chuckled at Anna's defensive tone.

"Nothing really. Just didn't figure you to be one to go for guys like him."

"Well what kind of guy did you expect me to go for then?"

Tony stopped peeling the apples for a second and looked straight ahead with a thoughtful expression.

"Gee, I don't really know. I guess I figured you to be the pretty boy type."

Anna laughed at this.

"What does that mean?"

"I don't really know. I guess someone a little younger, taller, with baby blue eyes."

Anna caught on to what Tony was saying.

"I never felt that way about John. We're just friends. You know that."

"You may think that, but I can tell when a guy likes a girl, and he liked you for a little while there."

Anna shook her head.

"No he didn't. He likes Minnie."

"Sure, whatever you think," Tony said grinning.

"I don't think so. I know so."

Tony shook his head chuckling.

"What's so funny?"

"You got defensive too."

"Well of course I did. I didn't want you implying things that weren't true."

"Uh-huh. Right."

Anna was getting frustrated. So she picked up a towel and whipped it at Tony.

"Out," she said sharply before doing it again.

"Hey, now," Tony said, "there's no need for that. I was just pokin' fun at you is all."

Anna smirked at this.

"If you wanted to have some fun, you should have done this."

Anna picked up some flour and sprinkled it on Tony's head. Anna laughed as the flour sunk into his dark hair and spilled onto his nose.

Tony picked up a larger handful of flour and blew it into Anna's face. When Anna sneezed, more flour was spread onto Tony's shirt, which made both of them laugh.

Anna was clutching her stomach, which was still in an enormous amount of pain, and tried to control her laughter. When Mrs. Wycek walked into the room, she looked angrily at the two of them and sighed.

"You two better have this cleaned up by the time I have the bread rolls ready."

When she turned away, the two of them choked down their last few laughs and got back to work.

When the pie was ready to be put in the oven, Anna glanced at the clock, which read six twenty-nine.

"I'm gonna' get in the shower. Will you put this in the oven and keep an eye on it?"

Tony nodded, so Anna turned around and went to grab clothes from her room.

When she opened the door, she saw Action laying on it with the front of his body turned towards the wall. Anna quickly closed the door and grabbed Action's shoulder.

"Action," she hissed, "what are you doing here?"

"I was gonna' come down and ask if ya' wanted me to bring you anything."

"I do have something you could use that's called a front door. My dad and Henry know we're dating, so it's okay now."

Action grabbed Anna around the waist and brought her down onto the bed with him so she was facing him.

"Now where would the fun in that be?" He looked at Anna for a few moments before asking, "Is that flour in your hair?"

Anna nodded. "Tony and I had a little… accident in the kitchen."

"Tony," Action said, and his eyes seemed to darken a little.

"Yeah. What's wrong with that?"

"I got a problem with him."

"Why?"

"He had to get a lousy job, so now he ain't bein' so loyal to the Jets."

Anna sighed at this.

"Well good for him. Everyone has to grow up at some point."

"Yeah, well, he didn't do it at the right time. We need him. Especially with those damn PR's everywhere. They're like rodents. If we don't get rid of 'em, they're gonna' take over."

"Don't be so over dramatic, Action. Besides, what have the Puerto Ricans ever done to you?"

"They came here. And now they want to start walkin' these streets like they own 'em. Well that ain't happenin'."

Anna sighed and shook her head. This was the part of Action that she didn't like. She rose from the bed and got her clothes.

"Where are ya' goin'?"

"I have to take a shower. You don't have to bring anything. Food should be ready by three."

She quickly closed the door behind her and made her way to the bathroom.

Once she was showered and dresses, she went back to the kitchen to see Tony pulling the pie out. It was golden brown and crispy looking.

"Well, I'm pretty sure we did a great job," Anna said to Tony, not taking her eyes off the beautiful pie.

"Yeah. I'm almost sad we have to eat it. It looks fantastic."

Anna smiled at this. She was beginning to remember why she had ever liked Tony, outside of his looks, of course.

Tony's mother then called them from the kitchen and asked them to help with peeling with the potatoes. With a sigh, Tony grabbed a knife and went out to the dining room where there was a large bowl of potatoes. As Tony and Anna began to peel the potatoes, a tired looking Riff walked in.

"Just in time, Riff," said Mrs. Wycek. "You can help Anna and Tony peel."

Tony's mom placed a knife in Riff's hand and walked back to the kitchen to put the bread rolls in the oven. Riff looked up at Tony and Anna with disbelief for a second before shaking his head and grabbing a potato.

As Tony and Anna were making fun of Riff's cluelessness on the art of potato peeling, Henry walked in. Just as he was about to turn back around, Tony's mother came out of the kitchen with another knife and looked at Henry.

"You. Peel. Now." She placed the knife in Henry's hand and walked back to the kitchen, where she was preparing the green bean casserole.

Henry looked at the knife in his hand and sighed. Then he went to stand next to Riff and began the drill. The four of them stayed quiet for a few moments when they hear the door open again.

Action walked in and looked at the four of them, and they stared back for a second, not saying anything to warn him of Mrs. Wycek's ability to detect potato peeling teenagers.

Mrs. Wycek came out of the kitchen again and wordlessly placed a knife in Action's hand before going back.

Action looked down at the knife before looking up at the other four and muttering, "What the hell?"

The four of them just laughed as Action shook his head. "What am I supposed to do with this?"

"Help us peel," Anna said between giggles.

The three other boys were holding onto the table as they kept laughing, with Henry holding his stomach in his other hand.

Shaking his head, Action went to grab a potato and began to peel silently.

Once Riff, Tony, Henry, and Anna stopped laughing, they went back to peeling potatoes. Anna looked around at the four who stood around the table with her. Each of them was so different, but somehow they were friends with one another. Well, at least most of them were.

Anna thought about how Action had once told her that he didn't like Henry, and about how this morning he had talked about the problems he had with Tony. She realized that Riff was probably one of the only boys from the Jets Action would never fight with or get heated about.

Anna didn't realize that she had been staring, but apparently she had been because Tony was looking at her and smiling. Blushing, she looked back at the potato she had in her hand and continued peeling.

Action, having seen the exchange, looked back and forth between Tony and Anna before slamming his knife down on the table and locking eyes with Tony. Tony looked at Action with a bewildered expression, while everyone else looked up and wondered what was goin' on

"You got somethin' you wanna say to Anna, Tony?"

"Action, what are you talkin' about?"

"Well you were smilin' at her, so I figured you must wanna' say somethin' to my girl."

Once it clicked in everyone's mind what was going on, they each had different reactions.

As Anna said, "Oh, Jesus Christ," and pinched the bridge between her eyes, Henry muttered "Here we go," and rolled his eyes. Riff let out a little snort and smiled as he chuckled. Tony looked at Action in surprise.

"Hey, man," Tony said, "it ain't even like that."

"Well then what is it like?"

As Action said this, he stepped closer to Tony till they were almost chest to chest. Or, rather, head to chest, considering their height difference.

Anna was ready to step between the two boys when Tony's mom shouted, "Anna, could you and one of the boys come in and help me with a few things?"

Anna grabbed Action's arm and yelled, "Coming," before dragging him along.

Once they were there, Tony's mom handed them two more knives and pointed to the sweet potatoes that were lying on the table. Before she left the kitchen, she put her hand on Anna's shoulder and whispered, "This should help keep him a little calm."

Realizing that she had heard the entire exchange, Anna blushed and nodded. When Mrs. Wycek left the kitchen, Anna went to the counter and began to help Action peel the sweet potatoes.

They were quiet for a few minutes before Anna said, "So, do you want to tell me what that was all about back there?"

"What?"

"Don't play dumb, Action. Why did you get all angry back there? Nothing happened."

"Then why was he smilin' at you like you two got a secret? And you were all blushin' and stuff too, so what am I supposed to think."

"Action…"

"You're two-timin' me, ain't ya?"

Anna was so flabbergasted by this accusation that she could not speak for a moment. When she finally spoke, she answered with another question.

"Why would I do that?"

"I don't know," he said quietly. "You tell me."

"I wouldn't do that. That's what I'm telling you. So you tell me why you would think that?"

"You didn't see the way he was lookin' at ya'."

"Oh for the love of God…"

"It's true. He was lookin' at ya' the way Baby John did sometimes."

"Not you too!"

Action looked at her questioningly.

"Tony said the same thing about me and John. And I am telling you that I never felt anything like that about John, and I do NOT feel that way about Tony."

"Then why were you blushin'?"

"I wasn't aware that it was a sin for me to blush when a decent looking guy smiles at me."

"You think he's good lookin'?"

"Yes, but I think Riff and John are good looking too. But you don't see me going after them either."

"You think they're good looking too? What about me?"

Anna could see that she was digging herself into a deeper hole, so she did the only thing she knew might work and kissed him.

Her hands went up to stroke his face lightly, and he held on to her waist with a hidden desperation. Anna realized that she hadn't kissed Action like that in a long time, so she tangled her fingers in his hair and pressed up against him, wanting to keep the kiss going a little longer.

When Anna finally pulled away, she said, "Does that answer your question?"

Action smiled and said, "I honestly don't even remember the question now."

The two of them smiled at each other before going back to peeling.

By noon, the mashed potatoes were done, and the sweet potatoes were being placed in the oven along with the green bean casserole. Tony's mother sent up two or three people every half hour to check on the turkey baking in her over. Action seemed to have cooled down, so he went up to check the turkey with Tony and Anna.

While Anna checked the turkey, Tony looked through his fridge for a few bottles of Coke. Action was seated on Tony's sofa waiting for the two of them. When Anna was satisfied that she checked the turkey thoroughly, she walked out to the living room and sat next to Action.

Once she was seated, Action's arm was around her instantly as he brought her face to his. He laid a few sloppy kisses on her neck and face before planting his lips upon hers. Anna smiled into the kiss before grabbing Action by the collar and pulling him on top of her. They hadn't been truly alone like this for a while, so…

Anna pushed Action off of her, who fell to the ground, once she remembered someone was in the other room.

"Anna, what's the matter?"

Action looked pissed and irritated, so Anna just shook her head and pointed towards Tony's kitchen. Understanding, Action nodded and went back on the sofa next to her. He wrapped his arm around her again, this time being careful to keep a bit more distance.

Tony came out with the Cokes and they drank them quietly before going back downstairs. Not before Anna checked the turkey again and declared that it would probably be done in about an hour or less.

When they got back downstairs, Henry and Riff were sitting on the sofa with Anna's dad. Anna's dad was reading the newspaper while Henry and Riff were listening to the radio. She took Action's hand and dragged him over to Anna's dad.

He peered up from the newspaper for a moment before looking back down. Realizing that Anna wasn't going anywhere, he looked back up at her, then at Action.

"Dad," Anna said somewhat timidly, "this is Action."

"Yeah, I know."

"Action, this is my dad Theodore."

At this, Anna's dad stood up and shook hands with Action. Anna's dad was only a little taller than Action, and Action definitely had a stronger build, but Anna could see that Action was slightly intimidated by the older man who had been able to conceive a son like Henry.

"You can call me Mr. Jones," Anna's dad said before letting go of Action's hand and sitting down, resuming his newspaper reading.

Anna sighed before Mrs. Wycek called her and asked for Anna to bring one of the boys to bring the turkey down as it was probably almost done.

When Anna and Action returned with the turkey, the table was set and the boys were setting out the food on the table. When everyone took a seat, Anna's dad grasped hers and Henry's hands for a prayer. As he said it, she glanced to her other side to see Action smirking at her. He winked quickly before closing his eyes. Once the prayer was over, everyone said Amen and began to eat.

**(A.N. Am I done yet? Though about it, but decided to give just a little more for my readers who have been so patient.)**

Once everyone was done eating, and all the boys, including Anna's dad, had done the dishes, Tony, Riff, and Mrs. Wycek left. As soon as they were gone, Anna's dad went off to bed, but not before looking at Action expectantly. Henry soon followed.

Anna and Action were standing alone at the front door, neither of them saying anything. Anna finally put her arms around his waist and buried her face in his shoulder as his arms enclosed her figure. They stayed like that for a few silent moments.

"So," Anna said, "that wasn't so bad, was it?"

Action chuckled.

"No, it wasn't. I think your dad hates me, though."

"Oh, he'll get over it. He barely even talked to you. Plus he's all bark and no bite, really."

"I have a feeling that might change when it comes to his daughter."

"Well, whatever. You don't have to worry about him."

They got quiet again. Action rested his cheek against Anna's head and sighed.

"Anna?"

"Yeah?"

He pulled away and took her chin between his fingers. He got close so their noses were touching.

"I love you. Okay?"

Anna nodded at this, not wanting to say anything. Action took this as a good enough response and kissed her.

They said their good nights and Action left. Anna went to her room and put on her night gown and sunk into her bed.

_So, he does love me. Good._

She closed her eyes as she thought this, feeling weightless and happier than she had ever been since…well since a while ago.

**Finally! Anyway, hope you liked the extra-long chapter. Since it's my spring break, I shall try to update at least once more. Thanks so much to everyone who reads and a special shout out to my reviewers AJ, outsiders83, and SarcasticSarcasm. **


	14. Chapter 12

**Yeah, so I just realized I spelled Anton as "Antone" in the last chapter. My bad. **

Christmas break had approached again, as had Christmas Eve. Anna was sitting in her living room surrounded by Henry, Velma, John, Minnie, A-Rab, Action, and Tony. Since Thanksgiving Tony had been coming over a lot more whenever he wasn't working, which wasn't too often, but it always managed to brighten Anna's day. Action, at first, was upset about Tony always coming over, but eventually began warming up to the Jets co-founder.

Her dad was working, of course, but that was so he could get New Year's Eve off instead. Anna was excited to spend New Year's Eve with her father, since she hadn't done so since she was ten.

Everyone was sitting around the living room, talking to one another as music played. John had just burned his tongue on hot chocolate, and was trying to find an ice cube as everyone laughed at his predicament. Anna was the one who got up and led him to the kitchen, where she grabbed an ice cube and told him to put it on his tongue. She then put one in his hot chocolate to cool it down.

They sat in the kitchen for a few minutes until the ice melted, not speaking. Anna had begun to feel a little awkward towards John ever since Action and Tony had said those things during Thanksgiving. Anna also thought about how Action had thought she and John had been dating at the beginning of the summer.

She knew it wasn't true. She had never actually felt that way about John. She had only ever considered the possibility of being with him. But since she had Action and John had Minnie, she never stopped to think about it. Until now.

"John?"

"Yeah, Anna?"

"I don't really know how to ask this. So I'm just gonna' be blunt. Have you ever liked me… as in wanted to date me?"

John looked at her thoughtfully for a moment before answering.

"Well gee, Anna. I don't really know. I guess… maybe for a little I thought about bein' with you. You're my best friend and all, so I can't say I never thought about it. But I don't think I ever really wanted you in that way."

Anna let out a sigh of relief at this.

"Oh thank God!"

John laughed at this.

"Why were you wonderin'?"

"It's nothing really. It's just that on Thanksgiving, Action and Tony were saying stuff about me and you, and I didn't really believe them, but it got me thinking."

"What kind of stuff were they saying?"

"Not much. Tony said you liked me for a while before you were with Minnie. And Action thought that we were dating before the summer. Oh, and he thought I was two-timing him with you or Tony."

She and John let out a slight chortle at this.

"Well, then," John said, "we better get back before Action thinks we're kissin' or somethin'."

When they got back to the party, everyone was handing out gifts to the people there. And Riff had arrived wearing a Santa hat with Graziella tucked under his arm. Anna sat next to Action again and placed her hand on his knee before whispering "Merry Christmas" to him.

He smiled at her and was about to kiss her before someone shoved a present between their faces. Anna looked up to see Riff grinning at them.

"I got ya' somethin', Action buddy."

Action suppressed a groan and opened it. Inside was a little toy gun. Action pulled it out and pulled the trigger which went off with a little "Pop!" Action looked at Riff in disbelief.

"Gee thanks, Daddy-O," Action said with sarcasm dripping from his voice.

Riff patted him on the back, ignoring the sarcasm, and said, "No problem, Action buddy."

Graziella and Velma then came up and placed something over Anna's and Action's heads.

"Merry Christmas, you two," they both said.

Anna and Action looked up and saw mistletoe. They looked at each other and grinned before leaning in towards each other. Once their lips touched, everyone in the room began whooping and hollering things. Anna pulled away right away and buried her face in his shoulder, embarrassed.

Another present was passed to them, which was from Tony. They opened it and found picture frames in it.

"Thanks Tony," Anna said, "but I don't have any pictures to put in them."

Tony smiled at her as another gift was passed around that was simply given to her. She noticed the gift was from Action, Henry, John, and her father. All the most important guys in her life, she realized. She opened it and pulled out a camera.

Letting out a squeal of delight, Anna's hands enclosed the camera and she peered through the lens and set her sight on Action. He was smiling at her. She set it down and wrapped her arms around him and whispered "Thank You," before saying the same to Henry and John.

"Where did you guys even get the money?"

"Don't worry about it, Anna," Henry said smiling.

Anna shrugged and picked her camera up.

"Okay, everyone. Gather around. I'm going to take a picture!"

Minnie immediately tried to get out of the shot, insisting that Anna be in the photograph. But Anna shook her head and pushed Minnie onto John's lap. John kissed her cheek and scooted back on the couch.

"Everyone smile!"

Everyone did. Anna held up the camera and took the picture. Once the picture was taken, everyone resumed what they were doing and Tony went up to Anna and hugged her.

"Hope you'll save that picture for your frame."

Anna smiled up at Tony and said "Of course."

They went back to sit down, and Action pulled Anna into his side.

"So, you like it?"

"Well, it's not a puppy…"

"Anna…"

"I'm kidding. You know I love it."

"Good," Action said before stroking her shoulder with his thumb.

"I have to get your gift."

"Anna, you don't have to get me nothing'."

"Too bad. But I can't give it to you till everyone else leaves."

"Why?"

"I don't want anyone to be jealous of your gift. It is pretty amazing."

"Uh huh. Sure."

Anna rolled her eyes at Action's disbelief and kissed his cheek.

Within the hour, almost everyone had left except Action and Velma. Velma volunteered herself and Henry to do the cleaning since Anna and Minnie had set everything up. So Action began to take Anna to the living room with him, but Anna shook her head.

"Your present is upstairs," she said quietly, and she sounded pretty nervous.

When they got up to Action's front door, Anna told him to close his eyes. She opened the door and pulled him inside.

The first thing Action noticed before opening his eyes was the smell of peppermint and vanilla. He inhaled deeply before Anna told him to open his eyes.

In Action's living room was a small Christmas tree full of ornaments that Action hadn't seen since he was young. It was lit up and had a gold colored star on top of it. Under it were a few small presents wrapped in a different assortment of wrapping papers. There were candy canes and stockings hanging up by his window. He inhaled again and noticed that sugar cookies sat on the dining room table.

Action looked over to Anna, who had a nervous smile on her face.

"I spoke with your mom last week and asked what I could get you for Christmas, since I knew you wouldn't tell me. She invited me to come over so we could do something special for you. She knows that she's been busy lately, so she asked me to help her with this. She made the cookies and set up the stockings, and I did the tree. And…well, is it okay?"

Action was speechless as he gazed around his home. He hadn't seen his house look like this since his brother had been there, which was three years ago. He looked at Anna, whose eyes seemed to light up as she observed her work proudly.

Not wanting to say anything, Action just took Anna's hands and put them on his face as his hands went to her waist. He pulled her towards him and put his forehead against hers.

"I love you," he said quietly, before wrapping his arms around her waist and resting his chin on her shoulder.

Anna rubbed his back and said, "Merry Christmas, Arthur."

Action chuckled before saying, "Merry Christmas, Johanna."

They stayed like that for a while, before the front door opened and the light was turned on. They pulled away from one another and looked at the tired face of Action's mother. Her eyes were somewhat droopy, but she had a smile on her face that looked as if she had won a million dollars.

She looked at Action and went to hug him. "Merry Christmas, Arthur." She pulled away from him and went to Anna to pull her into a hug. "And thank you, Anna," she said quietly.

Action looked dumbfounded as he watched the girls hug one another. He had no idea what happened between Anna and his mother, but he was suddenly a little scared at what the two of them could do together.

"Well, I'm gonna' be goin' to bed now, so you two have a good night." This was clearly a sign that Anna should leave. So she said good night to Action's mother and went to the door.

Once she and Action were in the hallway, Action wrapped his arms around Anna and lifted her off the ground, placing small pecks around her face and neck.

"Action," Anna sighed.

He pulled away and kissed her full on the lips. Her tongue slipped into his mouth, and he answered with his own. Action walked forward while still holding Anna until her back was to the wall. Anna lifted her legs until they were wrapped around his waist lightly and pulled onto hi tighter.

They did this for about a minute before pulling away from one another, both breathless and smiling. Anna slid down till her feet touched the ground, but she still held onto Action tightly. Anna began to plant little pecks over Action's neck as soon as she had her breath back. Action responded by bringing his lips back down to hers.

They didn't know how long they stayed out there, but by the time they were done, their hair was sticking up and their lips were slightly swollen. Anna pecked Action on his lips one more time before pulling out of his grip and going up to her room.

When she got inside her room, Anna slipped into her night gown and curled up into her bed. She lay there for what seemed like forever before concluding that she just was not tired.

She rose from her bed, pulled on her robe, and went outside onto the fire escape. When she looked around, she saw the snow that fell the day before melting into the pavement, making way for the snow that was falling at that moment.

She thought back to her and Action back in the hallway, how they couldn't seem to keep their hands and lips off of one another. Anna had never felt that kind of need before, and she had surprised herself when her legs had wrapped around him. When Action had told her he loved her that night, and when he had told her on Thanksgiving, Anna felt heavy flutters in her stomach and she always felt the need to let out a cry of joy. He hadn't said it more than three times to her, and she realized that she had only said it once to him.

She knew that she had been in love with him for a while, and she knew that Action knew that she loved him, but she couldn't help but feel guilty that she had only told him so once. And she hadn't even meant to tell him, which made her feel even worse. She ran back to her house and propped her window with a small jewelry box so there wouldn't be chilly winds going into her room. She went up the stairs of the fire escape and found Action's room. She noticed he was sleeping, and was about to turn around, but figured that he wouldn't be upset to be woken up by her.

She tapped lightly on the window a few times before he heard her. When he saw her, he went to the window and opened it. Then he grabbed her and placed her on the ground wordlessly. She went to sit on his bed and he went next to her. When she lay down, she took him by his shoulders and brought him down so he was almost on top of her.

She kissed him slowly and rubbed the back of his neck as she did. Action had his hands on both sides of her body, and he was propping himself up so that he was not laying on her.

He was the one to pull away first. He lay on his side with his head propped up by his elbow. She did the same thing and faced him. They looked at each other for a few seconds before he spoke

"I didn't thank you."

"Good. I don't want you to."

"Okay," he said before stroking her face with his thumb. Her eyes closed and she pressed herself against his body.

Anna kissed him again before pulling away and taking his jaw in her hand.

"I love you. Okay?'

Action smirked at this and nodded.

"Good," Anna said before getting up and kissing Action on his forehead.

When she got back to her room, she went to bed and was finally able to sleep, knowing she had said all she needed to Action for that day.

**Quick chapter and update! Yay! So, hope you enjoyed it. I tried to put a little extra "fluff" into it, and I hope it was successful.**


	15. Chapter 13

Christmas had passed, as had the New Year, and Anna was walking back to school with everyone else. Nothing to special happened for the rest of break, besides Action and his mother coming over New Year's Eve. Anna was afraid at first that Action's mother would take a liking to her father, but luckily no such thing happened. They shared the bottle of cheap champagne at midnight before they went to bed around one, claiming that they needed sleep. So Anna stayed up with Henry, Action, and Velma till about four in the morning.

Anna was walking groggily to school, holding a tired and cranky Action's hand. Snowboy, A-Rab, and Riff, however, seemed to be wide awake as they were running around all over the place, messing with everyone who showed signs of being tired. Which included Anna and Action.

A-Rab went between the two of them and began to make kissing noises while Snowboy went behind them humming sappy love music.

"So," Riff said, "how are the love birds likin' the new year?"

Anna turned to give Riff a murderous glare before grabbing Action's hand and storming on ahead. A-Rab and Snowboy, being the idiots they were, quickly caught up to them and were up to what they had been doing before.

Just before Action had the chance to lash out on them, Anna had turned around and kicked both boys in the shins. She stormed ahead with Action in tow. Action knew that, had he not been so tired from the late nights (or early mornings, really) during vacation, he would have smiled at his girlfriend's aggressive reaction. But, since he was in no shape to do anything other than sulk to school, he remained quiet and cranky.

When they arrived at school, Anna and Action exchanged a lazy set of goodbyes and went off to class. Their non-affectionate behavior prompted Minnie to ask Anna some questions.

"Did you guys get in a fight? Did he forget to kiss you on New Year's Eve at midnight? Did you guys break up?"

"Minnie?"

"Yeah?"

"Shhh. No, no, and no. We're just tired. I don't even know how I got here. I kind of blanked out after kicking Snowboy and A-Rab."

"Well you better wake up. We have a test first hour!"

This woke Anna up quickly.

"WHAT?"

Minnie giggled.

"Just kidding. We'll probably just take notes."

Anna glared at Minnie before laying her head down and sleeping through class. This was the routine for most of the day.

When her study hall arrived, Anna went to the library, found an empty table in a well hidden corner, and laid her head down again. When she heard someone take a seat next to her, she thought it would either be Action skipping class or Richard being annoying, but Anna looked up and was surprised to see Velma sitting there.

"Velma, what are you doing here? Don't you have class?"

"Yeah. But we had to come here to do research for some paper. But I don't wanna do that right now, so I'm gonna talk to you."

"Well you should probably do the research. The paper won't write itself."

Velma laughed at this.

"Sweetie, I'm sure I'll be fine. I'm more worried about you than some lousy paper."

"Why are people worried about me? It's been a long couple of days since I haven't gone to bed till late, so I'm tired. What's the big deal?"

"Well you haven't been yourself this last week. Your moods are all over the place and it's kinda scaring me. You're not pregnant, are you?"

Anna choked on the little bit of saliva that was in her mouth at this.

"Jesus, Velma! Of course I'm not! And maybe my moods are weird because I'm tired or something."

Velma didn't look satisfied with that answer. She stared long and hard at Anna, who was beginning to feel uncomfortable. And it wasn't because Velma was staring at her.

All of a sudden, Anna doubled over in pain.

"Ow!"

"Anna, sweetie," Velma whispered, "what's wrong?"

"I don't know. My stomach hurts. I feel like I'm being punched."

Velma nodded in understanding.

"Cramps?"

Anna looked up at Velma.

"Cramps? Why would I just get cramps out of nowhere?"

Velma laughed.

"Anna, it means you're gettin your period."

Anna paled at this.

"But…I don't want it."

Velma laughed again.

"You don't got much of a choice. I can't believe that you ain't had it yet. Then again, you are a small little thing."

Anna laid her head on the table and squeezed her eyes shut, trying to ward off the pain and discomfort that was growing in her stomach.

"Velma," she groaned, "what the hell am I going to do? I live with two guys who don't know anything about this stuff!"

"I'll take you to the store after school. We'll get you everything you'll need."

Anna nodded.

"Sounds good."

Later, when Anna arrived in lunch, she spotted another girl sitting in her spot. When Anna went up to the table, she heard the girls' laughter stop at once as Anna approached.

"Hey, Mary," Anna said, addressing the girl who disliked her the most, "where's Minnie?"

Mary shrugged her shoulders and glanced at the rest of the girls, who did the same thing. Realizing that they were trying to get rid of Anna in Minnie's temporary absence, Anna grew bold and sat down right next to the new girl.

"Hello. My name is Anna." She shook the girl's hand and the girl looked back stunned.

"Pauline," she said while still in shock.

"So, are you new to the school, or just new to this lunch hour?"

"Just this hour," Pauline said quietly.

"Pauline was just sitting here since we figured you wouldn't be around much anyway. She knows how Action can be," Mary said, interrupting Anna's next question.

Anna looked at Mary, confused.

"What on earth are you talking about?"

Mary smiled. "Well, when we heard the news, we told Pauline. She used to date Action, so she knows he has a hard time keeping his hands to himself."

This came as a shock to Anna. She had never seen Action with one girl more than once before they were dating. She was almost sure that the girl was lying.

"Yeah," Pauline said. "He's a real handful, ain't he? Hard to keep up with him once he's in the moment. Just gotta let it happen, I guess. But we don't blame you, hon."

Not seeing what the girls were implying yet, Anna asked, "You've had sex with Action?"

Pauline giggled as the girls around the table blushed. "Well, not recently or anything. He's been a bit busy with you, now hasn't he?"

Anna looked at the faces of the girls at the table. Gretchen, who was the quietest, had sympathy in her eyes. Laurie's face showed nothing but scorn as she looked at Anna's face. Mary's face showed a mixture of pity and cunning as her eyes trailed down to her stomach. And Pauline's face showed nothing but understanding.

Putting the pieces together, Anna became outraged.

"You think I'm PREGNANT!"

Anna almost yelled this, and the tables around her became quiet. Not wanting to make a scene, Anna leaned in closer to the girls.

"Where the hell did you get that stupid idea?"

The girls looked embarrassed as they looked at one another.

"Well," Gretchen said, breaking the short silence that occurred between the girls, "Laurie heard you talkin' about goin' to the store with the blonde girl 'cause you couldn't go with your dad or brother since they don't know about this stuff. And she heard the word 'pregnant' in the conversation, so she just thought…"

"And you assumed I was pregnant? Did you not hear anything else I said?"

Mary and Laurie nodded as if Anna was incredibly stupid for not seeing how they could believe it.

"I'm getting my period for the first time. I haven't even had sex with Action. We've only been together for about two months!"

The girls looked down in their laps, somewhat ashamed, as they absorbed what Anna said. When they looked up, Anna looked at them expectantly.

"Well?" Anna looked at each of their faces, waiting for an apology to come off their lips. When no such thing happened, Anna got up and stormed out of the cafeteria.

When she arrived in the library, she walked to a corner table and sat. Anna thought back to how nice and innocent the girls seemed at the beginning of the school year. How they spent their summer reading at home like she did. She wondered when and how they became so nasty.

Deciding that she probably wouldn't want to ever sit with the girls again, Anna got up and began walking around the school till the bell rang.

After school, Anna met Velma at the front of the school and they left immediately for the store. Once they walked in, Velma led Anna to the correct aisle and began browsing.

"Jesus," Anna said, gazing at the many feminine product brands. "Is it really necessary to have this many brands of tampons?"

Velma shrugged and began throwing boxes into her basket. People who walked by the aisle were giving them strange looks, but Velma paid no attention as she continued to fill the basket to the top.

Once they arrived to the front of the store, Anna grabbed a few chocolate bars and got in line with Velma. The girls split the bill and once they were checked out, they walked to Doc's.

Velma went to speak with Gaziella right away, so Anna headed towards Minnie.

"Why weren't you in lunch, Anna?"

Anna shrugged and opened her candy bar.

"Those girls are bitches," was all Anna said before shoving the candy into her mouth.

Minnie stared at her, dumbfounded.

"What happened?"

"They thought I was pregnant. And where were you?"

"Well, I was in line getting lunch. And they didn't mention that."

"Of course they didn't. Stupid tramps…"

Minnie looked at Anna with astonishment, then Anna caught Minnie's look and gasped.

"Oh, God. I'm so sorry. I forget that they're your friends. I'm so sorry!"

Minnie shook her head.

"It's fine. What's in the bag?"

Anna handed the bag to Minnie, who gasped when she looked in it.

"Anna, who needs that many tampons!"

"I really have no clue! Ask Velma," Anna said before looking over at Velma.

Velma smiled when she noticed Anna and Minnie looking over before turning over to giggle and gossip with Graziella.

Minnie handed the bag back to Anna and went to take a seat next to John and A-Rab. Anna was about to walk home before she felt arms snake around her waist and a face burrow into her neck.

"Action," she said quietly, "I'm not really in the mood right now."

Action pulled away and looked at her like she was crazy.

"What's the matter with you?"

Feeling offended by this, Anna raised her voice and said, "I just don't feel like kissing you, okay? Jesus Christ!"

She stormed out of Doc's and heard Action behind her calling out her name. She just kept going till she got to her house, and once she was in, she locked the door.

Action was pounding on the door by the time Anna had put everything in her room.

"Anna! Open up, sweetheart!"

This just made Anna angrier.

"Don't call me sweetheart! And go away!"

"Anna, what the hell is goin' on? Did something happen to you today? 'Cause ya' know you can talk to me."

Hearing this made Anna get teary eyed and her anger just drained from her body. She opened the door and walked into Action's arms. She wasn't able to hold back all her tears, especially when Action stroked her hair.

"This is going to sound so stupid. I'm not even sure why I got so mad at you. I'm just so emotional and I don't really understand it and I'm tired all the time and people think I'm pregnant…"

"Wait! Who thought you were pregnant?"

"Velma and the stupid hussies at lunch." Just thinking about lunch made Anna angry as she thought about what the new girl Pauline had said. "And you had sex with one of them!"

"What!"

Anna pulled away quickly and marched to her room.

"You used to date that Pauline girl. And she said you two…" Anna wasn't able to finish the sentence though, for fear of crying again, so she just crossed her arms.

"Yeah, I used to date her. And we did…you know…once. But it was only one time, Anna. And it ain't like I was in love with her or anything."

Anna's eyes flooded again, so she turned away. "You weren't in love with her, and yet you still gave up your virginity to her?"

"Well, that wasn't my first time…"

"What! Oh God…"

"There was only one girl before, I promise."

"And did you love her?"

"No. You're the only girl I've ever loved," he said before turning Anna around.

When she saw him, she lost it. She buried her face in his chest and sobbed.

"Oh God," she wailed. "I'm crazy, aren't I? I need to be locked up or something. This is awful!"

Action didn't say anything as he wrapped his arms around her and rubbed her back.

A few minutes later, Henry walked in with A-Rab. Anna immediately pulled away and looked at the boys and sighed before wiping away her tears.

"I hate PMS," was all she said before going to her room.

When she left, Henry and A-Rab looked at Action, who just shrugged and walked into Anna's room.

Action sat on the bed next to Anna, who was lying on the bed. She looked at him once before pulling him down and cuddling with him.

Action, who was still thoroughly confused, put his arms back around Anna and shook his head.

"Is this gonna be a regular thing?"

Anna let out a guffaw before saying, "God I hope not."

**I'm back! This chapter took forever, I know. And it's pretty jumpy, but whatever. I didn't feel like re-doing it. So hope you enjoy it! Oh and if you think Anna is acting kind of crazy, it's because this is pretty much how I act sometimes when I'm PMSing. :] **


	16. Chapter 14

Valentine's Day was approaching, and Anna had no idea whether or not she was supposed to care. Every other year it had never meant anything to her other than the day before the candy went on sale. But this year was different. Not only did she have someone she could share this holiday with; she was also PMSing badly and she needed chocolate.

She didn't really care if she got anything from Action (except for chocolate maybe), but she didn't know if Action wanted anything. He had never really been the classical romantic type, with surprise flowers and picnics. Anna thought him to be a closet romantic, when he always stole kisses when no one was looking and held her close and whispered sweet words to her.

Okay, so the last one didn't happen too often, since he wasn't really a man of words, but she still thought he was a secret romantic. And she also believed that he might secretly enjoy being romanced, thinking about how he loved what she did for him for Christmas.

Still, Anna didn't want to risk looking like an idiot, so she just ignored that holiday and all signs of it, even when it was looking at her right in the face. Minnie was constantly telling her that she should buy Action flowers, or maybe make a card, or take him out ice skating. Anna finally figured out that Minnie telling Anna what to do for Action was Minnie's way of telling Anna to tell John what to do for Valentine's Day.

So, Anna was still unsure, and the day arrived. When she went outside and saw Action, she paused for a moment, wondering if he would do something. When he did nothing, she let out a quiet sigh of relief and went to hold his hand. Instead, he put his arm around her and held her close.

She looked around and saw the other couples do their own thing. Riff had not taken his hands or lips off Graziella since they saw one another. Ice wouldn't stop looking at Velma, who had dressed exceptionally beautiful for the day and had done her hair nicely. John and Minnie were whispering and giggling with one another.

Anna looked up at Action, who had his eyes straight ahead. She decided to surprise him with a kiss, since he was the one who so often instigated them. When her lips touched his, he stopped walking and put his hand under her chin almost immediately, trying to deepen the kiss. Anna kept it going for a few more seconds before pulling apart and pecking him on the lips. She brought his arm back around her shoulders and they began walking wordlessly, each of them smiling.

When they got into the school, they were bombarded by the sight of posters hanging everywhere, reminding the student body that the Valentine's Dance was to be held that night in the gymnasium. Anna had already decided that there was no way in hell she would go, but Action asked anyway.

"So," he said nonchalantly, "you wanna go to that?"

"Not really. Not at all actually."

Action nodded at this and smiled. "Me neither. How 'bout we hang at my place? My mom's gonna be busy tonight with work."

Anna thought about what Action was asking. They never went to his place. It was always her room that they would do homework in (they meaning Anna) or her living room that they would take naps in (they meaning Action). She thought about his statement as a whole; how he mentioned that his mom would not be there.

_What if he has…expectations? _

Realizing that Action was waiting for an answer, Anna nodded and walked off to class. When she told Minnie what Action said, Minnie pretty much freaked out.

"Anna, you cannot go over there! He was pretty much telling you that he wants to…you know. I mean, why else would he mention the fact that his mom wouldn't be home?"

"Maybe because he just wanted to let me know, since the last time I tried to go to his room with just us two, his mom caught us and flipped."

"Well, what did she catch you two doing?"

"Nothing that bad. We were just kissing. On his bed."

This made Minnie freak out even more.

"What would have happened if she hadn't come in! Action's a teenage boy, Anna. You can't expect him to keep his hormones in check forever."

"Minnie, relax. I trust him, and you need to trust me. I can keep control pretty well, thank you very much."

Minnie nodded at this. "Yeah, I know. But you better be able to keep control. 'Cause if Action takes control, you won't have a chance."

Anna rolled her eyes. "Yeah, thanks for the vote of confidence."

After school, Anna made her way towards Henry's locker, where Velma was waiting with Action. As soon as they saw Anna, they avoided eye contact with one another as they looked at her. Anna gave Velma a questioning look, but she just shook her head and looked the other way.

Sighing, Anna walked over to Action and took his hand.

"So, are we going to your place now?"

Action said nothing. He just smirked and nodded and brought her with him.

Upon arriving at his house, Anna barely had a chance to put down her bag before Action had grabbed her and attached his lips to hers. Caught completely off guard, Anna was breathless and almost fell to the ground, but Action's grip on her was strong. He pulled her against him and put his hand behind her head, attempting to get as close as possible.

Anna just had her hands flat on his chest, and was doing her best not to fall over. Especially when his lips began trailing along her jaw and down to her neck.

She let out a breathy sigh as she said his name, and she felt him smile against her neck. She felt the heat rushing into her body, and realized that her jacked was still on. She tugged on it, which gave Action the hint to get it off. He quickly discarded the jacket onto the floor and continued what he had been doing before.

Anna's thoughts were reeling as he continued to kiss her neck, but disappeared once his lips were on hers again. She doesn't know how long it had been happening, but all of a sudden she felt her feet leave the ground as he brought her to his living room. The moment her back hit the sofa, Anna knew she was in trouble.

Action's hands were on Anna's hips, but were slowly moving down to her thighs as he rubbed circles into her skin with his thumb, all the while kissing her sensually. Anna had no idea whether she should stop him or not. Feeling trapped in the situation, both literally and figuratively, Anna just settled on lying there, lazily kissing him back.

As luck would have it, a knock came on the door, and for the first time ever, Anna was happy to be interrupted. Action let out a growl as he got up off the couch and answered the door. Standing in the doorway was a smiling Minnie and an awkward looking Baby John.

"Hey, Anna," Minnie said, ignoring Action and running straight to the sofa. John gave an apologetic look before walking in. Action, looking completely dumbfounded, shook his head and grabbed the back of John's collar.

"Baby John, you gotta go."

"Well, gee, Action, I would. But Minnie wanted to see Anna. She needs Anna's help pickin' out a dress for tonight."

"What's tonight?"

"The dance."

Action pinched the bridge between his nose and let out something of a mix between a sigh and a growl.

"And she just had to come over even though she saw Anna at school."

John shrugged. "Don't ask me. I don't know how their minds work."

Action let out another growl and punched the cabinets.

Out in the living room, Anna had told Minnie everything.

"Oh, thank God I got here in time!"

"What the hell should I do? I don't want to piss him off by pushing him away."

"Well better to have him pissed off then to do something you'll regret."

Anna nodded at this. "You are so smart."

Minnie nodded back. "Of course I am."

When John walked in with a very pissed off looking Action in tow, Minnie's face lit up.

"How about you and Action come with us, Anna?"

Anna glanced over to Action, whose eyes were wide with shock and anger. She shifted her gaze over to John, who was shaking his head.

Anna looked back at Minnie and shook her head.

"No, you two have fun. But thanks so much for asking."

Minnie squeezed Anna's hand before leaving with John. Anna turned around to see a visibly frustrated Action.

"Can't people leave us alone for one damn day?"

Anna smirked and shook her head. "We would get into a lot of trouble if it weren't for us getting walked in on all the time."

Action looked confused at this. "What do ya mean?" Anna looked down at her feet and said nothing. "Did ya think I wouldn't have stopped? 'Cause all you need to do is tell me."

Anna looked at him and sighed. "I just don't want you to be mad at me."

Tears began flooding her eyes, and realization hit Action's eyes.

"Anna, I wouldn't be mad at you if we stopped. I don't wanna do somethin' you ain't comfortable with."

Anna looked at Action and nodded, but said nothing.

Action held his arms out and said, "Come here."

Anna didn't hesitate to go into his arms.

"I'm sorry, Action. I just didn't want to ruin the night and I know that…"

"Shhh…it's okay. You didn't ruin nothin'." He kissed the top of her head. "Ya know, you make me feel pretty tall."

Anna let out a laugh at this. "Yeah. Too bad I never get that feeling unless I'm around five year olds."

Action smiled as Anna giggled, her fears disappearing with each laugh that came out. Soon enough they were quiet, and they began swaying to an imaginary beat.

Anna began humming a tune.

"What song is that?"

"It's a song my mom used to sing," Anna answered, not really wanting to get into it.

Action didn't press her further. He just spun her around and dipped her.

"You can dance?"

"You can sing?"

"Touché."

Action pulled away suddenly and put on the radio. When it came on, a slow Elvis song was playing, so Action brought Anna in again and they danced once again. This time, Action wasn't afraid to throw in some more intricate dance steps. And when the next faster song began playing, Action's dancing became even more rowdy as he did multiple turns that had Anna dizzy just watching him.

When she tried to do any moves Action was doing, she would end up stumbling into his kitchen table, which earned her many bruises. Another song came on, and Anna began singing along to it quietly. When Action joined her, she was shocked.

"So you can sing and dance? What else can you do? Fly?"

"Shut up," he said before pulling her in for a small kiss.

They danced and sang for another hour before they were back on the sofa in each other's arms. It was almost eleven o'clock, and Anna knew that Henry would be home soon. When she tried to get up, Action pulled her back down and skimmed his nose along her jaw line.

"I have to leave," she said sadly.

"I know," he replied. But he did not release her.

She leaned back against his chest, treasuring the warmth his body provided. She turned her head around to put her lips to his.

When she pulled away, she whispered a soft "Good night," before taking his face in her hands and kissing him again.

Just before she was about to walk out the door, she felt Action's arms around her waist.

"Happy Valentine's Day," he whispered before putting a sunflower in her hand. He kissed her cheek and whispered, "I love you."

Anna turned around and whispered "I love you, too, Arthur."

"Johanna," he said.

She pecked his lips one last time before leaving.

When she got up to her home, she put the sunflower in a vase and put it on her bedside table. When she laid down that night, she thought of all the things that had happened that night. She couldn't help but feel that something had changed between her and Action, especially when she thought about the fact that telling him that she loved him became easier that night than it had ever been before.

**So yeah. I'm too tired to say something witty or awesome, so I'll just say that I hope you enjoyed it. I'm thoroughly predictable, aren't I? Oh, and again, sorry for any grammar mistakes. I'm a bum.**


	17. Chapter 15

The year was going by quickly for Anna, and spring had approached, as well as spring break. Anna passed the time by shopping with Minnie or Velma, while the Jets were making trouble yet again.

Just when Anna thought things had cooled down between the Jets and Sharks, their rivalry had returned with a new vengeance. It happened the month before.

One day Anna, Action, and John had been walking down the street from Doc's. The next moment, a young Puerto Rican who looked to be about Anna and John's age walked in front of them, causing Anna to bump into him and stumble backwards.

"Lo siento, señorita," he said quietly while ducking his head.

Anna was about to say it's alright, knowing just enough Spanish to understand him, when Action grabbed him by his collar.

"What'd you say to her, huh?"

The boy looked up at him with fear clearly clouding his eyes. He didn't say anything, so Action tightened his hold.

"Action, that's enough," was what Anna said, but Action appeared not to hear her.

"What the hell did you say to her, you filthy spic?"

"Arthur!"

This caused Action to look back at her, since she only used his real name when they were alone together.

"Put him down! He was apologizing to me!"

Action let go of the boy's collar, and he scrambled off as fast as he could. Anna was about to take off after the boy to apologize, but John grabbed her shoulder and shook his head, indicating that it would only make things worse. So Anna turned to Action and proceeded to yell at him.

"What the hell was that all about? He didn't even do anything to you!"

"He's one of them Sharks! He was probably gonna hurt you!"

"Oh please! He wouldn't be stupid enough to try anything with you around. And how do you know he's even in the gang?"

"He don't have to be in the gang. They should all just leave, those lousy spics."

Anna shook her head. "I cannot believe you right now." She took off ahead of him.

"Where ya goin'?"

"Away from you! And don't come over!"

Anna, never the kind to hold a grudge, stayed mad at Action for an entire week, surprising everyone.

When she spoke to him again, they didn't apologize to one another. In fact, they didn't say anything. They just walked to school together with his arm around her shoulder. There must have been some unspoken agreement between the two, because when they saw the Puerto Rican boy again, Action turned his head and ignored him, which pleased Anna.

Things seemed to change between the two of them yet again after that. They weren't becoming more distant from one another, although Anna found that Action was having an easier time keeping his hands off her. Out of nowhere one day, Action began talking about his older brother.

Anna found out that Action's older brother, whose name was Raymond (Ray for short), was unlike Action in almost every way. Action described him as having a cool demeanor, not unlike Henry, which was probably the reason that Action and Henry had never really gotten along. Ray was a fighter, like his brother, but he was able to keep his temper under check better than Action could. Action felt things too strongly, while it seemed that Ray felt almost nothing at all.

Which is why, when Ray moved out, he felt no guilt over leaving Action and his mother without any support since Action's dad had gone to jail yet again. Action's mother, desperate to find work wherever she could, began to walk the streets during some nights while working two other jobs on top of that. Action had only seen Ray once since that day, when he came for Christmas a couple years ago, and their mother had tried her best to convince him to stay until Action was done with high school, but Ray was hearing none of that.

When Ray left the house that day, he gave Action the only piece of brotherly advice he had ever given him.

"Don't get caught up with anyone, Arthur. Not a girl, or friends, or anyone. Don't have none of that. Just watch yourself and you'll be alright."

Action, realizing how selfish his brother had been, proceeded to punch the cold-hearted man. When Ray left, Action promised himself that he would never turn out that way.

A few months later, Action met Riff, and found himself among the brothers he never had. Which is why Action felt so strongly about the Jets and the little amount of street they owned.

Action never brought up his father, which was alright with Anna. She figured that he would bring up his father when he was ready, just as she would talk about her mother when she was ready.

So, spring break was there, and Anna was taking every opportunity she could to sleep in or sit out in the little amount of sunlight that arrived that week. Anna would go out on the fire escape to read a book and bathed herself in the warmth. No one bothered her, which was a big relief to Anna, since she had begun to get tired of having people constantly with her.

After a few days of reading, Anna began to yet again to crave human contact. And since the Jets were back to causing trouble for the Sharks, she decided to walk along the streets and maybe go shopping. She preferred to shop alone because Velma and Minnie would always try to make her buy more expensive clothing.

Anna walked past one shop that caught her eye, and decided to turn around and have a look inside. Once inside, Anna immediately spotted a simple thin-strapped red dress with black polka dots. She ran her hand along the skirt and took it between two fingers, stroking it softly and admiring the feel of the fabric.

A young Puerto Rican woman came out from the back of the shop and walked up to Anna.

"Hello," she said politely in her accent. "Is there anything I can help you with?"

Anna looked up to her and nodded. "Yes. Um…how much is this dress?"

"About eight dollars," the young woman said.

_A pretty good deal_, Anna thought.

"Is there any place I can try it on?"

The woman nodded and took her back to a small room with a curtain as a door. Anna thanked her and stepped in.

Once the dress was on Anna, she immediately became smitten with it.

She had always had a hard time finding dresses that fit her without making many alterations. But this dress almost fit like a glove, gently hugging her waist and flowing down from that point till it reached her knees. Even the bust of the dress, which was always the part she had trouble with, was fitting well. She twirled a little bit and smiled.

"How does it look?"

Anna had almost forgotten that the young woman was outside the dressing room.

"Perfect," Anna replied. "Absolutely perfect."

She stepped outside of the room so that the woman could have a look at the dress. She smiled when she saw Anna in it.

"Oh, si. It is the perfect dress for you. And I am not just saying that."

Anna's smile grew at this.

"I'll take it!"

When Anna walked to Doc's, the Jets were all there with Velma and Graziella. She went back to sit next to John and Velma, but was intercepted by Action. He led her towards the back of the store and into the alley.

"Action, what's going on?"

"I probably shouldn't tell ya this, 'cause it'll make ya mad, but…" He looked at the bag in Anna's hand. "What's in there?"

"I bought a dress. Anyway, what were you saying?"

"Well, I heard Ice talkin' to Riff, and he's sayin' that he's thinkin' about askin' Velma to marry him."

Anna stayed silent. When she didn't respond, Action shook her.

"Hey, you okay?"

Anna shook her head. "This can't be happening. I mean, how the hell is he going to get enough money to support her, let alone buy a ring? And he can forget about living with dad and I if he thinks she's going to be living with us!"

Anna took a deep breath and continued. "And why would he tell Riff? Riff will just say something stupid that will make Henry do something stupid. Why is he even thinking about marriage? He's not even eighteen yet. Oh God! What if she's pregnant! I will die if she's going to have a baby. I can't be an aunt! Oh Jesus!"

She exhaled loudly and ran a hand through her hair. Action put his arm around her shoulder.

"Is it that bad if he marries her? I thought you liked Velma."

"I don't want her to be my sister-in-law now. In a few years, sure, but not now!"

"Well if he's gonna be happy with her, he should go ahead."

Anna glared at Action. "He'll have to get a job and won't have time for the Jets."

Action's look changed immediately.

"They ain't gettin' married. No way in hell!"

Anna almost laughed at how quickly Action's opinion changed.

"So how do I stop it?"

"I don't know."

They sat there for a few minutes before Anna came up with a plan.

"Okay, here's what we're going to do. I'll tell Henry that you and I are going to get married, and he'll flip! Then I'll bring up the fact that he was thinking about proposing to Velma, and he'll realize how stupid of an idea it is. It has to work!"

Action laughed when she finished. "How the hell are you gonna pull it off? You can't lie."

"Yes I can. I was able to keep our relationship a secret from him for a few weeks. I can do this."

"Okay, fine. But how is he gonna believe it? I ain't the type of guy who would do that."

"Well, when we go back in, let's look all happy and stuff. They'll think that something is up."

Action pulled her in and kissed her. "It won't be too hard to look happy, now will it?"

Anna grinned at him and kissed him again. "Well, okay. Let's do this."

So they went in smiling and with their arms around one another. Immediately, almost everyone looked at them with strange looks.

For the rest of the night, they kept up the act until it was time to leave. When Anna began walking home, John grabbed her and asked, "What's up with you an Action? You guys are actin' funny."

Anna giggled. "Let's just say that I have a plan. I'll tell you about it some other time."

John nodded and turned around. When Anna got up to her home, she closed the door and leaned against it like a love struck teenager (which she sort of was, in a way). Henry glanced at her with a questioning look.

"What's the matter with you? You've been strange all night."

Anna put on a silly grin at this. "I have a something to tell you."

"Well, what is it?"

Anna let out a cute giggle. "Action wants to marry me. And I said yes!"

The color immediately drained from Henry's face and he looked as if he was about to pass out.

"What?"

"Yeah, I know! We want to get married once the summer starts. I just have to make sure dad is okay with it, which I'm sure he will be once he sees how happy I am!"

Henry shook his head as if trying to get out of a dazed state. "You can't marry him. You ain't even sixteen yet."

"Well, he'll be seventeen really soon. And how much will change from now till I turn sixteen? I'll still want him! Better to do it now than wait till I graduate. That will take forever!"

Henry's face turned red all of a sudden. "You ARE NOT marryin' him! Where the hell is this comin' from! Did he knock you up!"

"Geez, no! I just don't want to wait. Besides, it will probably be cheaper to hold a reception for both your wedding and mine at the same time then waiting, right?"

Anna's face was suddenly serious and somber. Realization hit Henry's face and he looked panicked for a moment.

"How did you…how did you find out?"

"Does it matter? How could you think about proposing to her? Did you knock her up?"

"No! I just…I wanna marry her. And how is it your problem if I do?"

"You don't even have a job. How the hell could you support her and yourself?"

"I'll get a job."

"And then what? You scrape by on a low paying job while Velma stays home all day taking care of kids and cleaning? You won't be happy doing that."

"You don't have the right to tell me if I'll be happy or not! If I wanna marry Velma, I'm gonna do it. And I don't give a damn if I got your permission! You don't get it, do ya? You've been with Action for, what, six months? You think you're in love with him? Well, I've been with Velma for a year and a half, and I KNOW that she's the girl for me!"

"I don't THINK that I love Action. I KNOW that I do, too! So you do not get to use that excuse! Why are you doing this? You know you can wait."

"What if she don't wait for me, though?"

Anna began to comprehend what he was saying. "You don't think she's two-timing you, do you?"

"I don't know. I just think that she ain't happy with me sometimes. And I wanna change that."

"And you think marriage will make her happy?"

Henry shrugged. "I just can't lose her. She's got options. She could be with any guy she wants, but she's with me."

Anna shook her head at this. "I doubt that. Do you know how annoying she is? Seriously, I want to gouge my ears out whenever she chews gum. And I want to shove a sock down her throat whenever she does that cackle she does when she's being a bitch. She's the one who got lucky by getting a guy like you to put up with her."

"So, do ya think she's two-timin' me?"

"I'm not sure. All I know is she doesn't deserve you. And she's going to be one lucky girl once you propose to her…in the distant future."

Henry nodded at this. "Well I'm goin' to bed."

He sulked to his room. Anna immediately went to her room and out the window. When she reached Action's window, she tapped on it lightly.

He opened the window and helped her in.

"So what happened?"

Anna explained everything that happened between her and Henry, and she asked if Action believed that Velma was cheating.

"I don't think so. She ain't bright enough to know how to get away with it."

Anna hit his shoulder. "I'm serious!"

"Hey, so am I! Now I wanna see you in that dress you got."

They went to her room and he waited outside her window as she put it on. When she climbed out her window, he turned around and smirked once he saw her. He walked towards her in a predatory manner.

"What's that look for?"

Action said nothing as he grabbed her and buried his face in her neck. "It ain't winter now. You can't hide these with a sweater, so let's see if that makeup Velma got you works."

He began kissing and nipping along her neck. Anna laughed as she tried to push him off, but he wouldn't budge. Soon she just gave up and arched her head back to give him more room to give her hickeys. Once he was done, he inspected his work with a satisfactory smirk.

"I think they make the dress look better."

Anna rolled her eyes and pulled him in for another kiss before she shivered.

"I have to go to bed. It's getting cold. And now I have to figure out how to get rid of these!"

Action chuckled. "And will I be seeing that dress again?"

Anna nodded. "Yes. I promise."

"When?"

Anna smiled. "When you take me to a dance."

**Finally! I had major writers block for this chapter. It sucked. And I know it's kind of all over the place, but I hope you enjoyed it. Thanks! **

**P.S. I was, yet again, too lazy to read over everything and check over grammar mistakes. Sorry. **


	18. Chapter 16

School was ending in a week, and the Jets were becoming more and more restless about the Sharks. Rumors of a rumble had begun to surface after spring break, which had everyone on edge, including a wary Anna. She tried her best to keep Action away from fights, but it didn't always work, no matter how much she pleaded.

Action even managed to get in a fight on his birthday. Henry had to pull him away and bring him to his home, where Anna proceeded to yell at him. Action, of course, yelled back, and they didn't speak till later that night.

With all the tension going on, everyone still managed to be excited about the summer dance that was happening in two weeks. Whenever Minnie brought it up during lunch, the girls at the table would go into some sort of frenzy and it would be the topic for the rest of the hour. That was usually when Anna would leave and go out to the courtyard.

Anna had been becoming more distant from Minnie and Anna since after spring break. Minnie had been hanging out with John less and less, therefore hanging out with Anna less. And Anna had become distrustful of Velma ever since spring break.

So, Anna was left to hang out with the boys most of the time, which made her go insane sometimes. Like whenever Tiger or Snowboy would point out the hickeys on her neck that Action had become fond of giving. She had become too lazy to cover them, which of course prompted Henry and her dad to yell at her and Action. Or like when A-Rab would tell her that she would become a tomboy like Anybodys if she kept hanging out with them, which drove Anna to kick him in the shin, since she wasn't especially fond of the tomboy, despite the fact that Anna respected her at times.

One day, when Henry finally confronted Velma about the possibility that she was cheating, a screaming match occurred, with Henry throwing out accusations and Velma denying them all. It ended with Velma leaving in tears. So she hadn't been over for a while, which left Henry to sulk around the house.

"What should I do, Anna?"

Anna looked up from her book when she was asked this.

"About what?"

"I and Velma."

"It's up to you. You have to decide if you trust her. If you do, then you should apologize for accusing her. And if you still think she's lying, then I don't know."

So Henry left to go to Velma's house, and they were together and happy the next day.

This left Anna with just Action and John to keep her company, which turned into only Action as John began to hang out with A-Rab again. So, it was beginning to seem like her world was revolving around Action. They walked to and from school together. He would stop and see her in between classes and sometimes during classes like art or lunch. He would go home with her where they would stay at her house till ten o'clock on most nights, sometimes later.

Action asked her one afternoon in her room if she wanted to go to the dance.

Anna looked up from her homework and smiled.

"Of course. You wanted to see me in my dress again, didn't you?"

Action nodded. "Yeah, I do."

"Good. Then you'll have to show me how to dance, 'cause I have no idea how to."

The radio was on in no time and she tried to dance, but Action was having none of that. His arms enclosed around her and he brought her close while kissing cheek and moving his lips further down till they reached her neck.

"Action, not another one," she complained. "People will start thinking I'm a leper or something."

Action ignored her, of course, so Anna just gave up. When he was done, he pecked the hickey lightly with his lips before kissing her.

"Why do you enjoy giving me hickeys so much?"

"Why do you wanna know?"

Anna rolled her eyes. "I want to know if there's any way of stopping them. 'Cause this is getting ridiculous."

"Trust me, there's no way of stoppin' 'em."

"Well, will you still tell me why you give them to me?"

Action exhaled quietly before leaning in and moving his lips close to her ear.

"I'm a vampire, Johanna. I'm just gettin' you ready for when I suck your blood."

Anna swatted him on the chest and said, "Action!"

He laughed at her incredulous look.

"Seriously, tell me why? Is this a weird fetish I should know about?"

Action shook his head and looked serious all of a sudden. He leaned in once more and whispered into her ear again.

"I like people knowin' that you're with me."

Anna pulled away at this and smiled.

"I love you, okay?" Action nodded at this. "And these hickeys don't change how much I love you, alright?" He nodded again. "Good. Now can you please teach me how to dance?"

That still didn't happen, as John and A-Rab walked in a few minutes later.

"What's that I see on your neck, Anna?" When A-Rab said this, John locked his eyes on her neck. His eyes widened once he saw the hickey, and he ran up to her to get a closer look.

"Geez, Anna," he said while touching it lightly with his fingertips. "This one is huge." He turned to Action. "You gotta take it easy on her. You're gonna make her neck swell up or somethin'."

A-Rab laughed at this while Action put his arm around Anna with a proud look on his face. Anna hid her face in her hands and shook her head. And when Henry walked in with Velma, Anna ran to her room to hide.

Outside her room, she could hear Henry speaking to Action.

"What the hell did you do to her this time?"

A-Rab answered for Action. "I'm surprised you didn't see it! That thing was huge!"

There was a muttered "Ow" from A-Rab a few seconds later, then Henry's voice rose.

"You gotta stop with them hickeys. She's only fifteen. You're gonna have to be more careful in a year."

"Well, that ain't gonna stop him, is it?"

Another "Ow" came from A-Rab before Action muttered, "A-Rab, shut up."

"Anyway, we gotta get down to Docs. Riff's comin' up with somethin' we could do to the PR's."

"Alright," Action said. "Just give me a minute."

When Anna heard the front door close, she opened her door and bumped into Action who was trying to go in her room.

"What are you going to do to the Puerto Ricans?"

"I don't know. Riff will come up with somethin' to get them outta here."

"Why should they have to leave? What did they do wrong?"

"They came."

"So did our ancestors, but people aren't complaining about them anymore."

"They don't belong here. They got a place for them in Puerto Rico, so why do they gotta come here and take over our streets?"

"Because there's more freedom here! They're people too! Why do they deserve less than us?"

"I ain't gonna talk about this with ya now. I gotta see what Riff wants to do."

"You didn't answer my question, Action."

Action's voice rose at this. "I always answer your damn questions! Even when I don't wanna. But I try askin' you stuff, and all of a sudden it's 'Later, Action.' Well I'm sick of it! I'm done answerin' your questions till you answer some of mine."

He opened the door, then slammed it. Anna stood there for a few minutes before there was a knock on the door that shook her out of her trance. She opened it to see Velma.

"Well, I ain't supposed to be at Doc's 'cause of the meeting. So I figured I could hang up here with ya'." She noticed Anna's look of dismay. "What's the matter with ya'?"

Anna tried finding the words to say, but they didn't come out. So she just shook her head and looked down at the ground while taking a shaky breath.

Velma quickly became concerned. "Did Action do somethin'?" She looked at Anna's neck and saw the hickey. "Jesus! He gave you another one?"

Anna shook her head. "It's not that."

"Then what is it?"

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Why not? Don't ya' trust me?"

"I'm not sure."

Velma let out a humorless chuckle.

"This is about I and Henry's fight, ain't it? Well I didn't two-time him! I love him."

"How do I know you're not lying?"

"God, Anna! What's gotten into you? It ain't just me. You've barely been talkin' to anyone but Action."

"I'm not the one who's been pulling away! You, Henry, John, Minnie, Tony. All of you are pulling away from me and from each other. Why?"

Velma sighed. "I and Henry are at the point where we need some space, and I'm sure Baby John and Minnie are the same. It don't mean we don't love each other or anything like that. As for Tony, he ain't tryin' to get away from you. He's tryin' to stay away from the gang. He don't wanna deal with their problems anymore."

"That still doesn't explain why you're pulling away from me."

"We're not! You're just off in your own little land with Action! Now are ya' gonna tell me what's wrong?"

Anna took a deep breath before telling Velma about her fight with Action.

"Well what he did ain't right, but how do ya' expect him to tell you stuff if you don't tell him anything?"

Anna's eyes widened at Velma's sudden wisdom, but she remained silent.

"Have you even told him your mom's name?"

Anna shook her head as she stared dumbly at the wall.

"But it's still not right," Anna said softly. "I mean, about him and the Puerto Ricans. Why do they have to fight? I've never seen the Sharks do anything to the Jets unless the Jets started it. I just don't understand how they could hate each other without even knowing one another."

"It's just how things are. I know it ain't right, but it's how it is."

"If you think it's not right, then why do you never say anything? You're just as bad as the rest of the boys! You may be even worse, because you still treat the Puerto Ricans badly even though you don't believe it's right to do!"

"I don't say anything 'cause I ain't like you! I don't think they're that bad, sure, but I don't really want 'em here either. I just wanna get through life without problems, and tryin' to help the PR's will just make problems."

"You're just a God damn coward, then! If you believe something is wrong, then you should try to fix it. You'll never get through life without problems. You have to face them!"

"It ain't my problem, Anna! And it sure as hell ain't some problem of a fifteen year old girl!"

"It is my problem when people aren't being treated fairly! Now get out, you cowardly bitch!"

Without another word, Velma left, slamming the door on her way out.

Anna ran her hands through her hair before letting out a groan.

_It's not right, what the boys do to the Sharks. Or what Velma does, trying to deny the fact that what they do is wrong. I'm tired of it. Why can't people just get along?_

Anna thought about her mother. She didn't remember too much about her. Most of the memories seemed like a dream because they were so blurry she just wasn't positive they actually happened. But the things Anna knew were memories were so powerful that they sometimes took her breath away.

Like the way her mom would sometimes sing loudly and out of key whenever she was cooking or cleaning. And how she would sing softly and in such a lovely voice whenever Anna was upset. Or how her mother would braid Anna's hair and have to wrestle Henry to the ground to brush his hair. She remembers her mother's shy smile and the way she would tuck a stray piece of hair behind her hair whenever their step father would kiss her on the cheek or bring her flowers.

Anna must have been thinking about her mother for a while, because it had become dark outside and her dad had arrived home, holding a pot of something.

" made some soup, and she figured you would want a break from making dinner."

Anna nodded gratefully at her father. "Thank you, dad. I'll put it on the stove."

Later that night, when Henry and her dad had gone to bed, Anna went up the fire escape to Action's window.

When he opened it, he turned away and went to sit on his bed. She climbed into the room and went to sit next to him.

They were quiet for a few minutes before Anna began to speak softly.

"My mom's name was Katherine. She died when I was five years old, and Henry was about to turn eight. She was tall, had blue eyes, sandy colored hair, and was the most beautiful woman on the planet. She would sing badly and loudly whenever she was cleaning or cooking, but she had a beautiful voice, especially when she sang just for me. Her favorite color was yellow and she always braided my hair with a yellow ribbon. She was married to an older man named Paul, and she would always blush whenever he complimented her. She was perfect. And I miss her so much."

Action stayed quiet for a few seconds before asking, "How old was she when she died?"

Anna's eyes were misted over slightly, and she was thankful for the darkness.

"She was twenty-six."

Action nodded at this. "Okay."

She leaned her head on his shoulder as his arm wrapped around her. They stayed like that for a while, before Anna got up to leave. Or she tried to, but Action pulled her down again and kissed her.

"Stay."

"I can't."

"Please? I'll wake you up early so we can get you back home before your dad wakes up."

Anna heard a hint of desperation in his voice, something he rarely let show.

Anna put her hands on both sides of his face and nodded. "Okay, I'll stay."

Action moved over to the side of his bed to make room. Anna got in and curled up against him as he put his blanket over the two of them. Before falling asleep, she felt his lips touch her hair and his fingers stroke from her cheek bone down to where he left the latest hickey.

**Yay faster updates! And yay not being in writers block! Anyway, I don't have much to say, so I hope you enjoyed it.**


	19. Chapter 17

**Just a warning: Things get slightly steamy in this chapter. Nothing explicit, but just thought I should let you know so you're not all like "Oh God! My virgin eyes!" or something like that. (:**

Anna was sitting on her sofa, fanning herself off with her book every few minutes. Summer vacation had only started the day before, and the heat and humidity was already working its way into the living room. The dance was going to be that night, and she was actually excited to go, especially since Action and she hadn't fought for a week, which was leaving her quite happy.

That kind of ended, however, when some of the Jets came in laughing obnoxiously. Well, it wasn't the laughter that had Anna upset, but rather the state some of the looked in. Mostly John, who had bruises and a large cut on his face. She got up quickly and pushed A-Rab aside as she grabbed John's jaw and turned his face to see his cut.

"John, what the hell happened?"

The boys all got quieter and walked to the living room.

Anna looked around before saying, "Well?"

A-Rab and Snowboy were looking down at their shoes as Action and Henry came up to Anna.

"Shouldn't you be getting ready for the dance?"

Anna looked at Henry with an incredulous look.

"I have like two hours to get ready. I definitely don't need that much time. Now stop trying to change the subject."

"Well, how 'bout I take you for a walk?"

Anna shifted her gaze over to Action. She shook her head while grabbing John's hand and bringing him to the kitchen. She pushed him down on a chair and bent down a little so that she was eye-to-eye with him.

"So, John; are you gonna tell me what happened?"

"It was nothin' Anna. There was just a little fight with the PR's. Everything's gonna be alright."

"What is that supposed to mean?" John didn't say anything. "Whatever. I'm sick of this. You know where the ice is. Oh, and tell Action he won't have to worry about taking me to the dance. I'm staying home."

She walked into her room and shut the door, instantly regretting it as she began to feel hot. She stripped out of the dress she was wearing and lay down on her bed. She was almost asleep when her door was opened.

"Jesus Christ!" Anna yelled this out as she quickly grabbed her robe and wrapped herself up in it.

An angry Action was standing in the doorway. He closed the door and walked over to the bed.

"So, Baby John told me that you weren't goin' to the dance. What the hell?"

"Haven't you ever heard of knocking!"

"Answer me!"

"Sorry, what was the question?"

Action rolled his eyes and sat on the bed while muttering, "Smartass."

He grabbed her hand and pulled her over by him.

"Oh, no you don't! I'm not giving in to this!"

Action ignored these protests and pulled her over till she lay on top of him. He wrapped his arms around her waist and tried to kiss her. Anna, however, turned her head to the side and was trying to push herself out of his grip. Action let out an aggravated groan before flipping them over so she was beneath him. Anna immediately stopped moving and her breaths became shallow.

Action swooped down and kissed her chastely on her lips. He kissed down her jawline and to her throat. When he neared her collarbone, he opened her robe a bit to expose her shoulder. He continued to leave a trail as her breaths became gasps and sometimes a moan.

He kissed along her chest near her collarbone till he reached her other shoulder.

"Action," she breathed out lightly. "My brother is out there."

"No he ain't. He went over to Velma's. All the other guys are gone too."

Anna nodded at this and whispered, "Okay."

Action kissed her lips again before sliding the robe off her arms completely. He ran his hands down the side of her body and along her exposed stomach. Anna's head fell back against her bed, which left Action to begin kissing her neck again.

This continued for a while, before Action put his mouth against Anna's ear and whispered, "So, are you gonna come to the dance then?"

Anna's eyes snapped open then. She quickly grabbed Action's shoulders and roughly threw him off her till he was on the floor.

"Oh my God! Did you really just do all that so I would go to the dance!"

"Anna," he protested as he got off the floor.

"No! I cannot believe you!" She quickly put the top of her robe back on and tied it tightly. "Get out!"

Action shook his head. "Can't we just talk or something? You know I really want you to come to the dance! What can I do that'll convince you to come?"

"Not a damn thing after that. Ugh, just go!"

He opened the door roughly and slammed it shut. Anna let out a shaky breath and flopped back on her bed. Feeling the heat, she took her robe off and threw it on the ground.

"Anna!" Minnie yelled out from the living room. "Come on! We gotta get ready!"

She walked in Anna's room and her eyes widened when she saw Anna.

"Well, what happened here?"

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm helping ya' get ready!"

"Well, don't bother. I'm not going."

"Why? What happened with you and Action?"

"How do you know it's Action's fault?"

"I see the hickey. And you're lying on your bed half naked."

"Oh."

There was an awkward silence.

"So, you wanna talk about it?"

Anna shook her head. "Not really. You can go and have fun though. I'll talk to you later."

Minnie shrugged. "Okay. See ya'."

Right after Minnie left, Anna felt angry.

_She didn't even try to convince me to go! A couple months ago she wouldn't have left with arguing for half an hour at least! What's happening?_

Shaking her head, she put her robe on and went to the living room. She turned on the radio and lay on the sofa.

_Ugh. Maybe I should go. I bet the gym feels cooler than here. And I have to wear my dress at some point. I would probably have fun._

She looked at the time, which was nearing ten o'clock. She looked around real quick before sighing and sprinting to the bathroom.

She showered quickly and ran to her room, yanking her dress off the hanger. When she slipped it on, she stood still for a moment in front of her mirror.

_It's even prettier than I remember. Now what am I going to do with my hair?_

This was when she wished she had Minnie or Velma with her. Living without a woman in the house didn't give her much of a clue on how to do hair.

An idea struck her suddenly. She went into her dresser and to her bottom drawer. Digging around, she found what she was looking for.

When Anna opened the small wooden box, she began to pull out her mother's jewelry till she came across a black feather that was meant to be a hair clip. Anna grinned when she saw it and put it to her lips, kissing it. She pulled out a picture of her mother at her first wedding.

Her mother was wearing a floor length flowing dress that had short sleeves. The bottom of the skirt and the neck line had black flowers embroidered around them. At least, that's the color Anna assumed they were. Instead of wearing a wedding veil, her mother had the feather tucked into the side of her tight curls, which were pulled out of her face. She stared at the picture for a minute, trying to find any similarity between her and her mother. Not finding any, she sighed and put the picture back.

Once her hair was brushed, she pinned her hair back, trying to emulate her mother's look. She stuck the feather in her hair and looked in the mirror.

Nervousness set in her stomach as she fidgeted with the dress.

_Action's probably still mad. This is a really bad idea. He won't even want to see me._

She put her hand to her hair and set her fingers on the pin holding it. As she was about to pull out, she heard the door open.

"Anna, you home?"

She ran out of her room and saw Tony, standing there and holding a tie.

"Hey Tony. Are you going to the dance?"

"Yeah. But I can't tie this. Help me out?"

Anna nodded and went to help him.

"Why aren't you there yet? Took you too long to get ready?"

Tony's cheeky smile made Anna blush.

"No. I'm not going. I thought about it, but it's probably better that I stay home. Action's mad at me."

Tony's smile dropped at this.

"Oh. Well I think it's a shame that you got all dolled up for nothin'." Anna looked up at Tony as she finished tying his tie. "How 'bout I walk ya' there?"

"Tony, you don't have to do that."

"I wanna'. And if Action don't wanna dance with you, I sure will."

"Tony…"

"Come on. I can feel that something's gonna happen tonight. Something might happen for you, too. But if you don't go, how will you know?"

Anna thought about this for a moment before nodding at Tony.

"Okay. I'll go. But let me walk in by myself. I don't want to make Action angry. You know how he is."

Tony nodded, knowing that Action still got weary whenever he was around Anna. He held out his arm for her.

"Shall we go?" She nodded and hooked her arm into his.

**I thought about keeping going, but I figured this was a good place to end. Anyway, sorry this took so long. I've been so busy, and I got a Tumblr, so that's kind of taking aver all my internet time. Sorry. Anyway, hope you enjoyed the chapter and I will try my absolute best to get more chapters up this month. Oh, and I'm in West Side Story for a production this summer. (: **


	20. Chapter 18

When Anna and Tony made it to the front door of the gym, Ann entangled her arm from his and gave him a smile.

"So," she said, "you'll come in a few minutes?"

Tony smiled and nodded.

"Yeah, no problem. Go have fun!"

Anna nodded and grabbed his shoulders, pulling him down so she could kiss his cheek.

"Thank you so much Tony."

When he smiled at her, she couldn't help the small flutter she got in her stomach. Blushing, she turned around and walked into the dance, where a middle aged man was talking. He seemed overly happy, and everyone there was mocking him.

Anna quietly snuck through the Puerto Ricans, trying not to make a scene. A few of the girls sent glares in her direction, but one girl smiled at Anna as she looked at her dress. Anna realized this was the girl from the dress shop. Anna smiled at the girl and waved before she continued to make her way over to the Jets.

When she got there, everyone was silent as Riff and Graziella made their way to the middle. A few seconds later, a Puerto Rican couple followed Riff and Graziella's lead. The girl had a purple dress and a confident smirk on her face. Anna noted the girl's natural grace and ability to be sexy, something Anna could never pull off.

She recognized the other boy as Bernardo, the leader of the Sharks, and came to the realization that the boys weren't here to just have a good time.

When Riff and Bernardo snapped their fingers, couples from each gang formed two circles. When she saw Action go in the circle with a girl in a gold dress, she couldn't help the hurt she felt. She turned away from them and went to the side of the gym with the other Jets. Snowboy saw her and waved her over as music began playing and the people in the circles began walking.

She went to Snowboy who flung his arm over her shoulders as he smiled at the other Jets. Once the music ended, there was a silence as everyone took in who their partners were. Immediately, everyone went to grab the hand of their original partner and a different song started.

Anna watched with a confused look as a bunch of couples broke out into a mambo number. She could tell at this point that they weren't dancing for fun anymore. She felt the tense atmosphere as she kept her eyes on Action. He would get a small, mischievous smirk on his face every time he would do an intricate dance move. But most of the time, he had a fierce, angry expression as he danced.

When Riff and Graziella began to have a dance-off against Bernardo and Bernardo's girl, she looked for Action, who was cheering with all the other Jet boys, breaking his angry façade. She began making her way to Action, but was having a difficult time making her way through the crowd while keeping her eyes on him.

Anna finally reached Action and grabbed his arm as the music began slowing down. He jumped a little when he felt her hand, but relaxed once he saw her. Not saying anything, Action grabbed Anna's hand and led them onto the dance floor. When he stopped them, he turned around so that he was facing her.

They leaned slowly towards each other, then slowly away. They did this one more time before putting their arms up and beginning the dance.

Anna shocked herself at how naturally she was able to do the dance. She knew it wasn't hard, but she was pleasantly surprised that she didn't fall over her feet.

When they repeated the dance, Action smirked down at her, which caused Anna to smile at him before doing the steps again. This time she stumbled a little, but still managed to stay on her feet.

When the music slowed down, the couples around them stopped dancing and linked their arms together over their heads. When Anna and Action did this, Anna stared at Action and focused on him completely, as if he were the only person in the room.

At one point, each person leaned away from their partner and reached out their arms. Anna and Action, however, just leaned into each other for a short kiss. They then clasped hands and brought them over their heads so they were facing one another. After a few moments, and without breaking eye contact, they brought their hands apart and gracefully moved them to a different position.

After the arm movements were complete, everyone put their hands behind their backs and stood there. Then, they slowly brought one arm up and began walking around. As they walked, they brought their arms down slowly. As the music sped up, everyone just seemed to be marching around until the whistle blew.

All of a sudden, everyone was in motion again. Anna looked around for Action, but at the moment, he was nowhere to be found. Instead, she saw John and Graziella looking worriedly at a crowd of people that included Riff, Tony, and Bernardo. Not knowing what was going on, Anna tried to move in closer, but was grabbed by Velma, who shook her head at Anna and pulled her back. Anna saw Henry standing back as the man with the bow tie came in and interfered with whatever conflict was brewing.

Sighing, Anna turned around and looked for Action. When she spotted him talking to the other Jet boys, she went up and grabbed his hand. When he looked back and saw her, he quickly tucked her under his arm and walked to the corner of the gym.

"Thought you weren't comin'," he said quietly.

"Changed my mind," she mumbled.

"Why?"

"Well you wanted to see my dress, right?"

Action smirked at this and nodded.

"Yeah." He paused. "I'm really glad ya' came."

Anna nodded. "Me too."

He was about to lean in to kiss her when he heard Riff call Ice over. He turned quickly and muttered "Sorry," before going cracking his knuckles and joining Riff and Ice.

Anna rolled her eyes and went off to find Tony to ask if he wanted to dance. When she spotted him leaving, she decided it would be best to leave him alone.

Someone suddenly grabbed her arm and swung her around. She stumbled into the person and looked up to see John.

"You decided to come," he stated.

"Yes, I did."

"Well I'm glad ya' did."

Anna smiled at this. "Thanks John. Where's Minnie?"

He shrugged. "I think she went home. She's mad at me again."

"What for?"

"I don't really know."

Anna shook her head. "Oh well."

She looked up at the clock to see it was almost midnight.

"So, do you think you could walk me home?"

"Sure. Let's make it fast though."

"Why?"

"We got a war council at Doc's."

Anna rolled her eyes again.

"Fine. Let's go now then."

They linked arms and began walking out. Before they went up the steps, Anna glanced behind her really quickly to see Action's eyes locked on her and John. With just that quick glance, Anna noticed a look of fury and anguish that she had never seen in Action. Turning around, Anna had to bite her lip to keep herself from crying at the sight.

Across the gym, Action's thoughts were stirring, but one thought seemed to overtake the rest as he saw Anna walk out with John.

_I know she don't love him like that, but she'd be better off if she did. She don't deserve a hoodlum like me. But God, I love her too much to let him have her. I'm so God damn selfish. I'm sorry Anna._

He quickly excited the gym and went into the hallway. He looked around to see if the coast was clear before he punched the wall. Breathing heavily, he turned and kicked a trash can that was lying there. He hadn't felt such rage and self-loathing in a long time.

_Damn her for making me feel this way. And damn me for not doing anything about it._

He brought his hands up to his head and ran his palms down his face, trying to wipe away his anger and sorrow. He then put his back to the wall and slouched there.

The realization that he truly didn't deserve Anna and that he would never be good enough for her truly sunk in as he did this. Even though he knew this, he also knew that he wouldn't change himself to be better for her. He was too stubborn to change.

He leaned his head against the wall as he pictured Anna in her dress. When he first saw her that night, he had to stop himself from just kissing her senseless. He had never seen a girl as beautiful as her, and deeply wanted to show her that. But, being the "cool" guy he was, he stayed quiet.

He was never a huge talker, which was why everyone called him Action. If he was angry, he'd punch something. If he was sad, he'd sulk, then get angry and punch something. And when it came to him and Anna, as open as he was with her, he still preferred to show rather than tell. He believed Anna pretty much understood what he was telling her with his kisses and touches, but sometimes he feared that maybe she didn't realize just how much he cared for her.

And he couldn't really tell her, either. Sure, he'd said "I love you" before, but those were only three words that no longer seemed difficult for him to say to her. But for him to describe other things, like how much he loved her, just didn't happen. He instead left the hickeys he loved to put all over her neck to speak for him. Sure, they were there to keep other guys away, but he really meant for them to be a reminder as to who really loves her.

Action walked outside, only to lean against the wall of the brick building again. He let out a frustrated groan as tears began to prick his eyes and he spoke his thoughts out loud.

"Baby John wouldn't be afraid to tell her stuff. And now I'm sittin' here like a damn coward all because I can't tell the girl I love how much I love her."

He let out a sob before taking a deep breath and holding back any other tears that threatened to spill out. He rubbed at his eyes as he took a few more breaths before going back inside and heading to the bathroom. Leaning over the sink, he looked up to see that there were no signs of his breakdown. He fixed his collar and tie a bit before heading back out to the gym, where the Jets had grouped up and were leaving, minus Riff and Ice.

Sighing, Action put his focus back on the war council and made his way to Doc's.

**So, I don't really have much to say. I really hope you enjoyed it. Sorry it took so long. Hopefully, I can update sooner next time.**


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